The All Blacks lost 31-27 to the Springboks at Ellis Park due to an officiating error.
The game began with Bongi Mbonambi scoring in the 16th minute, but replays showed the Springbok hooker had knocked the ball on in a tackle by Jordie Barrett.
Captain Scott Barrett attempted to remonstrate with referee Andrew Brace but was unsuccessful.
Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu’s conversion attempt was ruled out due to taking too long. All Blacks coach Scott Robertson joked about the situation.
Despite the loss, momentum swung back to the home side when Codie Taylor’s opening try came after a sustained All Black pressure.
The game was lost at the end, not the start, with the Springboks going from 27-17 down to 31-27 ahead with two similarly built tries.
The All Blacks committed six first-half penalties in their own 22 and were not shown a card. A dubious call when a Springbok kick-off was adjudged to have gone out on the full went in their favor.
Prop Ofa Tu’ungafasi was penalized for infringing, sparking the Springbok comeback.
The two sides are now moving to Cape Town for the second test next weekend.
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