New Zealand have taken control of the 2022 Rugby Championship courtesy of a dramatic last-gasp 39-37 victory over old rivals Australia at Marvel Stadium in Melbourne.
The All Blacks looked on course for a comfortable bonus-point win when they dominated the early stages of the second half to move into a 31-13 lead.
However, a remarkable Wallabies fightback saw them haul New Zealand in and even take the lead through Nic White's 77th-minute penalty, putting them on the verge of reclaiming the Bledisloe Cup for the first time in 20 years.
New Zealand had the chance to secure a draw with a simple penalty one minute later, but instead went for the corner and their risk appeared to have backfired when Australia won a penalty from the subsequent maul.
However, French referee Mathieu Raynal controversially ruled that the returning Bernard Foley took too much time over taking that penalty and stripped the Wallabies of it, instead awarding New Zealand a scrum five metres from the Australia tryline.
It was a decision without many precedents in recent memory, and Ian Foster's visitors took full advantage as Jordie Barrett went over with the clock red to secure an incredible victory after one of the most dramatic finales to a match in the long history of this rivalry.
🎙️ "Have you ever seen it?!"
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New Zealand beat Australia 39-37 in the most bizarre ending! pic.twitter.com/A8lGXnsXMM
In sharp contrast to many of their performances during a year to forget, the All Blacks came flying out of the blocks with Samisoni Taukei'aho going over for his first try inside the opening five minutes.
Australia fought their way back into the contest through Rob Valetini's score, and an action-packed first half which also included two try-saving tackles, both captains suffering game-ending injuries and three yellow cards ended level at 10-10.
The main drama was saved for the second half, though, and it began early with Australia still down to 13 men when Taukei'aho scored his second try of the night within 90 seconds of the restart.
The Wallabies' ill-discipline came back to hurt them again soon after they were restored to their full complement, with Jake Gordon being sin-binned and New Zealand fully capitalising on another numerical advantage as Richie Mo'unga and Will Jordan went over within three minutes of each other.
At that stage it looked as though New Zealand were on course for a relatively comfortable win to take them six points clear of the chasing pack in a Rugby Championship table which saw all four teams separated by just one point at the start of play.
However, Australia launched a superb fightback as Andrew Kellaway crossed twice in six minutes before Pete Samu finished off a brilliant break, Foley adding all of the extras to level things up.
White then kicked a penalty deemed out of Foley's range to nudge Australia in front, but the hosts' ecstasy soon turned to despair as they found themselves on the end of a decision which will be talked about for years to come.
Having all-but clinched victory by winning a penalty from a New Zealand maul after the All Blacks' immediate decision to go for the corner instead of the posts, a flabbergasted Foley was penalised by the referee for taking too long over the restart.
New Zealand duly made the most of their reprieve as Barrett went over from the resulting scrum, leaving New Zealand now four points clear of Australia at the top of the Rugby Championship table, with South Africa and Argentina due to face off in their game in hand on Saturday.
The result means that the All Blacks keep hold of the Bledisloe Cup for a 20th successive year, but few of the 152 previous showdowns between these two Trans-Tasman rivals have contained quite as much drama as this one.
Barney Corkhill
