'It means a lot': Big play gets All Blacks' Ardie party started

The All Blacks beat South Africa 24-17 at Eden Park in a Test that looked comfortable for an hour and then very nearly turned over completely.

New Zealand's first-half accuracy and ambition gave them control, and for long stretches they looked the more intelligent side against the world champions. Then the rain arrived, the Boks threw themselves at the home defence with familiar desperation, and the margin narrowed alarmingly.

With two minutes remaining it was Ardie Savea who produced the decisive intervention, a play skipper Scott Barrett later credited as the moment the game was settled. Barrett described Savea as the spiritual leader of the team, and the crowd's reaction suggested broad agreement.

The result extends the Eden Park record and, more importantly for this side, banks a win over South Africa achieved by attacking rather than by attrition.