New Zealand beats South Africa 24-17 in Rugby Championship, extends its Eden Park streak

AUCKLAND, New Zealand (AP) — New Zealand stretched its unbeaten record at Eden Park to 51 matches with a 24-17 win over world champion South Africa on Saturday in a match played in passing rain and under a hail of Springboks' kicks.

South Africa kicked incessantly in the first half, from scrumhalf, flyhalf and center but without positive effect in a test billed as the biggest of the year.

The All Blacks, coming off a loss to Argentina in Buenos Aires two weeks ago, attacked with ball in hand and scored tries inside 17 minutes to winger Emoni Narawa and fullback Will Jordan, building a lead that the Springboks couldn't break down.

In contrast with the ball in hand, South Africa was often ineffective. The foundations of their attacking play were static and the All Blacks' defense was excellent in unpicking their strength at breakdowns and mauls.

The Springboks still were strong at set pieces from which they scored two tries in the second.

“We just weren’t up to scratch tonight,” Springboks captain Jesse Kriel said. “We made far too many handling errors and just things that weren’t up to standard for us.”

Hooker Malcolm Marx scored in the 62nd minute after a clean tighthead to a superior Springboks scrum. But the All Blacks scored their third try to center Quinn Tupaea when South Africa was a man short, with Kwagga Smith in the sin-bin.

Finally, Cobus Reinach scored from a five-meter scrum and when the Springboks still were down to 14 men, cutting the All Blacks margin with six minutes remaining.

The All Blacks have been brittle in these tight finishes in the recent past but on Saturday they were steely. The Springboks had a late attacking chance from a lineout with two minutes to play but Ardie Savea, in his 100th test, won a turnover.

One last possession for the Springboks and the All Blacks again won a turnover and ended the match.

“The game had everything it was built up to be,” New Zealand captain Scott Barrett said. “The Springboks are not world champs for no reason and they pushed us right to the end there.”

The Springboks’ blitz defense was disruptive at times but also narrow and congested. The All Blacks worked to move the ball wide quickly to exploit the thinner defense on the fringes.

That worked in only the second minute when Billy Proctor’s kick from center gave them field position. From a lineout following Cheslin Kolbe’s poor clearance, Beauden Barrett kicked wide and directly to winger Narawa who gathered, dummied fullback Willie le Roux and scored.

Narawa lasted only a few more minutes in his fourth test in three years, leaving the field with a rib injury. Damian McKenzie came off the bench, moving to fullback while Jordan moved to the wing.

In the 17th minute Beauden Barrett’s 50/22 gave the All Blacks the throw to a lineout deep in Springboks’ territory. Wallace Sititi took the ball off the back and handed off to Jordan who came from depth at pace and went straight through a hole in the Springboks’ defense.

Handre Pollard scored South Africa’s first points from a penalty in the 22nd minute but missed another three minutes later.

The Springboks didn’t create a clear try-scoring chance in the first half, despite a territorial advantage. Their kicking out of hand, even in the All Blacks’ half was often wasteful. They tried the midfield lineout once: the All Blacks quickly countered it.

The All Blacks led 14-3 at halftime and increased it to 17-3 with a Damian McKenzie penalty in the 50th minute.

South Africa finally found its way to the All Blacks’ line in the 62nd minute. First, a massive surge at a scrum gave the Springboks a clean tighthead. Fresh from the bench, Kwagga Smith took the ball forward and close to the Marx picked up the ball and forced his way over.

Smith was shown a yellow card in the 65th minute for a cynical infringement, stopping an All Blacks’ attacking meters out from the Springboks’ line.

The All Blacks stayed on attack, drew in the South African defense in the middle of the field, then went wide and replacement center Quinn Tupaea ran onto Beauden Barrett’s pass on a neat angle and scored.

Then Reinach’s try made the finish thrilling but the All Blacks held on in front of 48,000 fans.

Earlier Saturday, host Australia beat Argentina 28-24.

AP rugby: https://apnews.com/hub/rugby

Damian McKenzie, left, of New Zealand and Cheslin Kolbe of South Africa compete for the ball during their rugby international at Eden Park in Auckland, New Zealand, Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025. (Andrew Cornaga/Photosport via AP)

Jordie Barrett of New Zealand run sat the defence during their rugby international against the Springboks at Eden Park in Auckland, New Zealand, Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025. (Andrew Cornaga/Photosport via AP)

Samisoni Taukei'aho of New Zealand runs at the defence during their rugby international against the Springboks at Eden Park in Auckland, New Zealand, Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025. (Andrew Cornaga/Photosport via AP)

Will Jordan of New Zealand scores a try during their rugby international against the Springboks at Eden Park in Auckland, New Zealand, Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025. (Andrew Cornaga/Photosport via AP)

South Africa halfback Grant Williams is tackled by the All Blacks Simon Parker, right, during the rugby international between South Africa and New Zealand at Eden Park in Auckland, New Zealand, Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025. (Brett Phibbs/Photosport via AP)

BEIJING (AP) — Breaking with the United States, Canada has agreed to cut its 100% tariff on Chinese electric cars in return for lower tariffs on Canadian farm products, Prime Minister Mark Carney said Friday.

Carney made the announcement after two days of meetings with Chinese leaders. He said there would be an initial cap of 49,000 vehicles on Chinese EV exports to Canada, growing to 70,000 over five years. China will reduce its tariff on canola seeds, a major Canadian export, from about 84% to about 15%, he told reporters.

“It has been a historic and productive two days,” Carney said, speaking outside against the backdrop of a traditional pavilion and a frozen pond at a Beijing park. “We have to understand the differences between Canada and other countries, and focus our efforts to work together where we’re aligned.”

Earlier Friday, he and Chinese leader Xi Jinping pledged to improve relations between their two nations after years of acrimony.

Xi told Carney in a meeting at the Great Hall of the People that he is willing to continue working to improve ties, noting that talks have been underway on restoring and restarting cooperation since the two held an initial meeting in October on the sidelines of a regional economic conference in South Korea.

“It can be said that our meeting last year opened a new chapter in turning China–Canada relations toward improvement,” China's top leader said.

Carney, the first Canadian prime minister to visit China in eight years, said better relations would help improve a global governance system that he described as “under great strain.”

He called for a new relationship “adapted to new global realities” and cooperation in agriculture, energy and finance.

Those new realities reflect in large part the so-called America-first approach of U.S. President Donald Trump. The tariffs he has imposed have hit both the Canadian and Chinese economies. Carney, who has met with several leading Chinese companies in Beijing, said ahead of his trip that his government is focused on building an economy less reliant on the U.S. at what he called “a time of global trade disruption.”

A Canadian business owner in China called Carney's visit game-changing, saying it re-establishes dialogue, respect and a framework between the two nations.

“These three things we didn’t have,” said Jacob Cooke, the CEO of WPIC Marketing + Technologies, which helps exporters navigate the Chinese market. “The parties were not talking for years.”

Canada had followed the U.S. in putting tariffs of 100% on EVs from China and 25% on steel and aluminum under former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Carney’s predecessor.

China responded by imposing duties of 100% on Canadian canola oil and meal and 25% on pork and seafood. It added a 75.8% tariff on canola seeds last August. Collectively, the import taxes effectively closed the Chinese market to Canadian canola, an industry group has said. Overall, China's imports from Canada fell 10.4% last year to $41.7 billion, according to Chinese trade data.

China is hoping Trump’s pressure tactics on allies such as Canada will drive them to pursue a foreign policy that is less aligned with the United States. The U.S. president has suggested Canada could become America's 51st state.

Carney departs China on Saturday and visits Qatar on Sunday before attending the annual gathering of the World Economic Forum in Switzerland next week. He will meet business leaders and investors in Qatar to promote trade and investment, his office said.

Associated Press business writer Chan Ho-him in Hong Kong contributed to this report.

Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney, center, arrives to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian, Pool)

Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney, left, meets with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press via AP)

Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney, left, shakes hands with China's President Xi Jinping at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press via AP)