South Africa claimed a record fourth World Cup with a tense 12-11 win over an All Blacks team reduced to 14 men when captain Sam Cane copped a yellow card in the 29th minute that was later upgraded to red.
No argument. He collected the head of Jesse Kriel with his shoulder.
The All Blacks had lost fellow loosie Shannon Frizell to the bin for 10 minutes earlier in the half.
The Boks had a couple of players sent to the naughty step as well.
A distraught Cheslin Kolbe, unable to watch, buried his head in his hands for the final seven minutes after he was sent off for deliberately knocking down a pass.
But the most controversial decision came early in the second half when South African captain Siya Kolisi received a yellow for head-on-head contact with Ardie Savea.
That was expected to be upgraded to red as well, which would have restored the numerical balance. But the TMO spotted some mitigating factors and the card remained yellow in a decision that will be long debated.
The match had plenty of drama, but the action was painfully slow. The regular interventions from the TMO stifled the flow.
It cannot have been the spectacle World Rugby was hoping for.
Some further forensic analysis also denied All Blacks halfback Aaron Smith a second-half try in his last game for his country.
But for all that, the All Blacks still had opportunities to win the game. A couple of missed kicks come to mind.
