‘I’ll have a look’: The worrying All Blacks stat that stunned Scott Robertson

All Blacks coach Scott Robertson let out a perplexed sigh after being asked a question in Saturday’s press conference at Ellis Park. Robertson had just been made aware of New Zealand's struggles when it comes to scoring in the last 20 minutes of Tests this year.

The All Blacks started their new era under Robertson with a slender 16-15 win over England in Dunedin, another hard-fought win over the English a week later in Auckland, and then a dominant triumph over the Flying Fijians in San Diego.

But, with The Rugby Championship points on the line, a worrying trend emerged. New Zealand failed to score in the final quarter of their two Tests against Argentina, and it was the same story as they fell to a heartbreaking loss to South Africa in Johannesburg.

New Zealand led 27-17 before replacement prop Ofa Tu’ungafasi was shown a yellow card in the 67^th minute. Then, the hosts scored two quick tries through Kwagga Smith and Grant Williams as they recorded a comeback win for the ages.

After the all-time classic at the world-famous Ellis Park, ‘Razor’ Robertson was made aware of the concerning trend. While it was believed the All Blacks had failed to score in the final 20 minutes of four Tests in 2024, the real number (three) is just as concerning.

“It’s the first time I’ve heard that stat so, good work,” Robertson told reporters.

“I’ll have a look at it.”

That result was the one that got away for the All Blacks. New Zealand have, historically, built a reputation on closing out Test matches but the visitors weren’t able to do that in front of a hostile Ellis Park crowd of around 60,000.

Jordie Barrett scored about 60 seconds into the second half, and Caleb Clarke completed a try-scoring double with an effort about 10 minutes later. It appeared to be tracking well for the All Blacks before the match’s momentum swung drastically in the hosts’ favour.

When replacement halfback Grant Williams scored with about six minutes left to play, and after the conversion from Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, there was a feeling the match was over. The crowd went berserk and the Springboks seemed to thrive off that.

The All Blacks have instead been left to rue what could’ve been.

“It’s obviously the discipline stuff, a bit of kick battle, small moments and the game changed just a little bit of momentum,” Robertson reflected.

“Then off the back of that with a bit of discipline, all those things combined, really.

“Look, a lot of South African players could start, couldn’t they? They’ve got good depth and they play that well,” he added. “But we still had opportunities.

“Great experience for those young guys but we’ve just got to execute better because that’s how we’re going to finish Tests better.”

With the Freedom Cup now on the line, the All Blacks will take on the Springboks next Saturday in a battle that will have historic ramifications. South Africa will want to push their case further for Rugby Championship winners status, which now seems to be within reach.

But the All Blacks will have a thing or two to say about that. The Rugby Championship is by no means over at this stage, but there’s also no question that the Springboks are in a prime position to take out the crown for the first time since 2019.

“The great week down in Cape Town, we’re looking forward to it. There’s always plenty of support down there,” captain Scott Barrett said.

“I guess we’ll relish the occasion and hopefully put a performance in that’s a little bit better than tonight.”