South Africa skipper John Smit paid tribute to his team's resilience after the 23-19 victory over Australia, which won them the 2004 Tri-Nations. "Every player wore his heart on his sleeve to win a tremendous game of rugby," he said of the Durban decider.
"We were disappointing in the first half, but the second half performance certainly made up for that."
The Springboks finished with 11 points to Australia's 10 and New Zealand's nine after the closest title race ever.
Australia captain George Gregan pointed to Victor Matfield's score early in the second half as the turning point.
"Matfield turned the game with his try - we wanted to start the second half the way the Springboks did," he said.
But he praised South Africa's new-found belief after their lengthy spell in the rugby wilderness.
"They have certainly bounced back with a bang," said Gregan.
MMIX
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