Springboks win historic third World Cup

South Africa have sealed a record-equalling third World Cup crown after a comfortable 32-12 victory over England. The Springboks became the first side to win the competition after losing a game in the Pool stages, having lost 23-13 to New Zealand in their opening match. They had never previously scored a try in two World Cup final appearances but ended that trend in the second half as they took advantage of England’s lack of discipline. Kyle Sinckler’s day was over with just a couple of minutes on the clock after he picked up a head injury, and that proved to be a big blow for the Red Rose. Handre Pollard was key to their triumph as he kicked 22 points, despite missing his first attempt, while wingers Makazole Mapimpi and Cheslin Kolbe crossed to pull clear in the latter stages. They have matched New Zealand’s record of winning the Webb Ellis Trophy on three occasions – adding to their victories in 1995 and 2007. Scrum-half Faf de Klerk told ITV: “It’s mixed emotions but we are so unbelievably glad to do it for our country and for ourselves. We had to play great against England because we know what a great tournament they had had. “We exploited them out wide, then it was massive forward performance from our boys up front. It’s a massive win. “Our forwards have been phenomenal at scrum time, they came out, gave me great ball and time for the boys to play out in the back. We’re so happy.”