YOKOHAMA, Japan, Nov. 2 (Xinhua) -- South Africa lifted their third Rugby World Cup after defeating England 32-12 in the final held here in Yokohama.
The majority of the game was a tight affair with a number of penalty decisions at the scrum awarded by an overzealous Jerome Garces, the referee, against England.
However, despite struggling to get decisions out of the French referee, who struggled all game to control the breakdown and scrum, England failed to get into a rhythm as they had against New Zealand.
The first half was defined by the exchange of penalties between the South African flyhalf, Handre Pollard, and the English inside center, Owen Farrell.
At the break, South Africa left the field 12-6 up and in control of the game, thanks to a strong defense and the help of Garces.
The rest of the game continued in the same fashion immediately after the break. It was a scrappy game with both sides giving away with a number of scrums and penalties as the pressure began to mount.
The game remained tight, with South Africa never extending a lead beyond eight points, until winger Mapimpi ran through from a kick to score the first try of the game.
However, the television match official asked Garces to check for a forward pass in the build up to the try. If England thought they were going to get their first respite from the referee, they were mistaken. Despite the reply showing a forward pass, Jerome Garces refused to pull the play back and awarded a try for the Springboks.
With the score at 23-12 to South Africa following the try, England began to open up the play, chasing a try of their own, South Africa dealt one final knockout blow as winger Kolbe crossed the whitewash in the 74th minute.
A successful conversion later from Pollard and South Africa were coasting to a final score of 32-12 and the Webb Ellis Trophy.
