New Zealand versus South Africa is always a keenly contested affair and the match at Eden Park this morning was no different, with passions running high.
The All Blacks took a 17 – 10 half-time lead with tries courtesy of Kieran Read and Brodie Retallick, while Bismarck du Plessis had a very eventful first 40 minutes.
The South African hooker was harshly sin-binned for a crunching tackle on Dan Carter (see main image) that forced the out-half off with a suspected broken collarbone, and bundled over for a try on his return with the Springbok scrum looking impressive. And the action did not stop there as he was sent off early in the second half for a second yellow by Romain Poite, who probably won't be holidaying in South Africa any time soon, before captain Read added a second try to his name.
Of course there is plenty of history and rivalry between the two, with things getting a little heated after the Carter incident.
A picture paints a thousand words and all that.
The crowd in Auckland are getting good value for their money.
