VIDEO: The moment that epitomised Bok win

Coach Jacques Nienaber pointed to a moment of brilliance by flying wing Cheslin Kolbe as the incident that epitomised the character of South Africa.

The defending champion Springboks edged tournament hosts France 29-28 in a thrilling seven-try encounter at Stade de France on Sunday.

The victory set up a rematch with England - the team they beat in the 2019 Final - in a semifinal at the same venue this coming Saturday.

It was at the end of the first quarter, with Les Bleus captain Antoine Dupont setting up hooker Peato Mauvaka for a try to tie the scores at 12-all.

Fullback Thomas Ramos saw his touchline conversion attempt dramatically charged down by Cheslin Kolbe - those two points ultimately proving costly in the final result.

Nienaber reverted back to the 2019 quarterfinal against Japan, when they scored a 60-metre maul try that tilted the game in their favour - a true team effort - when asked about the one incident that showed the character of South Africa.

In Paris this past Sunday, individual brilliance proved to be the match-winner.

(Continue below the Cheslin Kolbe video ...)

"Cheslin Kolbe's charge-down [of a Thomas Ramos attempted conversion kick], you don't see that often," the coach told @rugby365com.

"That is somebody chasing a lost cause.

"That was excellent.

"We were opened up a couple of times - which is, unfortunately, my department," he said of the team's defence.

"However, the scrambling, the effort the players put in was enormous."

The Bok skipper, Siya Kolisi, spoke about the character his team showed in the 10 minutes they were a man down as the epitome of what his team stands for.

South Africa trailed 19-22 at half-time - with lock Eben Etzebeth off the field for the opening eight minutes of the second half - for a cynical foul.

"I think a lot of questions were asked of us as a group by the French team," Kolisi said in his post-match media briefing.

"The character of the boys stood out.

"We had a clear plan of what to do, especially in the breakdowns.

"We knew how hard they were going to be.

"They were tough to stop with 15 men, imagine how hard it was with 14.

"We had to fight for each other for that period and I am really proud of the character and discipline we showed.

"I just thought we really wanted it.

"I must give credit to the guys who came off the bench.

"It was a hard game.

"We knew how tough it was going to be with the French team at home and honestly I just want to say well done to them for what they have achieved and how hard they worked."

French President Emmanuel Macron was among the 79,486 crowd.

But he paid tribute to the hosts, especially captain Antoine Dupont who returned to the lineup after suffering a fractured cheekbone in the pool games to play the full 80 minutes.

"France can be proud.

"For their leader to be injured and come back and play as if he had never been away was incredible."

@king365ed

@rugby365com