"I think the Springboks got a fair bit of momentum in the middle of the second half," Rennie reflected on the pivotal moments that tilted the game in favor of the South Africans. This third match in the Rugby's Greatest Rivalry series gave the Boks a 2-1 lead, with the final decider scheduled next Saturday in Baltimore.
The match was evenly poised at halftime with the score tied at 12-12, after a vigorously contested first half. However, key plays by Jesse Kriel, Malcolm Marx, and Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu later in the game secured a pivotal win for Rassie Erasmus' squad.
"We were able to play at a high tempo in the first half and we saw a lot of their big men struggling with that," Rennie added. "We were keen to make that pay in the second half, but we made a few errors that slowed the game down into scrum penalties and gave them field position."
Rennie noted a period where the Springboks managed to dominate at set-piece, gaining control of the match. "It’s frustrating because there was a lot of effort out there, we just weren’t quite clinical enough in the first half, and we couldn’t wrestle momentum back in the second," he explained.
Despite the loss, Rennie expressed pride in his team's effort and refused to concede any significant disparity in skill between the two sides. "I don’t think there was much in it, even in the first Test, which we won convincingly on the scoreboard in the end," he commented on the overall series.
"It comes down to key moments. But I still don’t think the gap between the two teams is very big at all. I'm really proud of the effort, our boys worked bloody hard tonight. It’s hard when you’ve lost a Test, it’s easier to reflect on the negatives."
Reflecting on the upcoming final Test, Rennie remained optimistic about his team's resilience. "I can guarantee the changing room is pretty gutted right now, there are a lot of heads down in there, but our mindset will be to bounce back next week," he said.
Unfortunately for the All Blacks, they will be without Ardie Savea for the trip to the U.S. due to a shoulder injury, and outside centre Quinn Tupaea's participation is uncertain following a knee scare.
As the series heads to its climax in Baltimore, both teams face the challenge of overcoming significant injuries, but the spirit of competition remains undeterred. Rennie concluded, "They’re champions for a reason, they were strong up front and played some good footy tonight. We made a few errors that allowed them to play. But that gap is not big at all."
