There was just seven seconds left on the clock, and one massive scrum to play to decide the winner of the Rugby World Cup between South Africa and New Zealand.
The Springboks led by a point and needed to withdraw a last furious push from the All Blacks.
The two lines of forwards locked horns, and South Africa won the scrum, making sure it would keep the ball from the ruck, prompting referee Wayne Barnes to call an end to a nerve-racking and gritty final.
The Springboks and All Blacks collided in the Rugby World Cup final for the only the second time.
The first time was so iconic that a movie was made about it. Jonah Lomu was corralled, Joel Stransky hit the winning drop goal in extra time and Nelson Mandela wore a Springboks jersey and cap. It could only be 1995.
The fates have prevented rugby’s legendary rivalry from featuring in another final until now, and even this was unexpected.
It’s the first final in which both teams have lost a pool match. The All Blacks lost to France. The Springboks lost to Ireland. Stade de France rocked for both unsurprising results. But the old stadium was literally shaking on consecutive nights in the quarterfinals when the All Blacks stunned Ireland and the Springboks knocked out host France.
The Springboks have surprised nobody. They were big favorites before the tournament and have possibly ploughed the toughest path to the final in tournament history. Beside Ireland, they had to shake off Scotland and Tonga in the pool stage, then win one-pointers against host France and England in the knockout stage.