The Rainbow Nation rejoiced as one as Siya Kolisi's Springboks thumped favourites England in a dramatic Rugby World Cup final in Japan on Saturday.
President Cyril Ramaphosa, who flew to Tokyo for the final and was presented with a Springbok jersey before the match, tweeted: "We are bringing it home!" and "WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS!!!"
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"Since I've been alive, I've never seen South Africa like this," SA's captain fantastic said after his team's resounding 32-12 win.
The Springboks thrashed England in a game that echoed the historic 1995 win over the All Blacks in the team's first World Cup. Then Nelson Mandela handed over the Webb Ellis trophy to Springbok captain Francois Pienaar at Ellis Park, Johannesburg, in one of the most iconic moments in sporting history.
On Saturday, former Springbok legend Breyton Paulse summed it up for the nation: "Wow folks, that was f**kin' beautiful.
"What a bunch of winners. Dankie Rassie, Siya and the boys. That's how you unite a nation. Dankie Bokke."
The Nelson Mandela Foundation said: "May this moment reinvigorate the hope of 1995 and inspire our nation to build a South Africa of Madiba's dreams."
Former public protector Thuli Madonsela tweeted: "When we work together we win. Well done Springboks. We needed this win."
The victory is about far more than rugby, said Springbok legend Bryan Habana, who was in the side that beat England in 2007.
He said the sight of Kolisi leading the team would inspire millions of South Africans.
An emotional Kolisi, the first black player to captain the team, said the win showed what the Rainbow Nation could achieve if it pulled together to face its challenges.
"We have so many problems in our country, but a team like this, we come from different backgrounds, different races, but we came together with one goal and we wanted to achieve it," said Kolisi.
With jubilant teammates in the background, Kolisi later again thanked South Africans in an online video on Twitter: "South Africa, we just want to thank you as a team for all your support.
We've given everything we can today and we've seen all your videos and all your messages. Thank you so much, South Africa. This is what we as a team can do when we decide on one goal and one dream, we give it our best."
The pressure on Kolisi this week was unprecedented for a Bok skipper. Media coverage homed in on his journey from humble roots in Zwide township in Port Elizabeth to Tokyo's Yokohama stadium.
The Springboks now draw level with the All Blacks at the top of the Rugby World Cup rankings with three wins each. Apart from the epic 1995 victory, SA also won the tournament in 2007, beating England then too.
Seated in the bowels of the stadium next to Kolisi after the game, impassioned coach Rassie Erasmus spoke about South Africans' ability to handle pressure and how this helped steel the Springboks.
He said a frank discussion about real-life hardship back home had fuelled his side's hunger to capture a third Rugby World Cup.
"First, we had to ask what pressure is. In South Africa it is not having a job . having a close relative who is murdered. Rugby should not create pressure, it should create hope. We have a privilege, not a burden.
"Hope is when you play well and people watch the game and have a nice braai and watch the game and ... for those 80 minutes, you agree when you usually disagree. That is our privilege and that was the way we tackled it," said Erasmus.
He paid tribute to his captain.
"When you sit down and think about it, there was a stage when Siya didn't have food to eat and, yes, that is the captain and he led South Africa to hold this cup, and that is what Siya is," said Erasmus.
Kolisi praised the Bok coach. "He kept telling us how good we are and he drove us to places we have never been before," he said.
Initially the final was a tight, nerve-jangling contest that was dominated by penalties, but the Boks grabbed the initiative thanks largely to England's high error rate.
Springbok flyhalf Handre Pollard, with six penalties, helped establish a buffer before the issue was put beyond doubt when left wing Makazole Mapimpi became the first Springbok try-scorer in a World Cup final when he dotted down in the 67th minute.
Right wing Cheslin Kolbe put the icing on the cake when he scored the Springboks' second try, in the 74th minute. In the stadium the South African fans, outnumbered tenfold by England supporters, were in ecstasy.
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• Bok supporter tweeted after the match: "South Africa delivers Brexit".
• Prince Harry, who attended yesterday's final, is a huge rugby fan. He admitted earlier this year that he still pines for the game like a "labrador with a tennis ball" and could not resist joining in whenever he's near a rugby ball. He toasted the Boks with a beer after the match.
• Eddie Jones's backroom staff were unable to use their drone to record training sessions this week because their Tokyo base was close to an airport.
• Rassie Erasmus paid tribute to Japanese fans at one of his press conferences. Some had sung the South African national anthem, helped by lyrics printed in katakana phonetic script.
• Ramaphosa's trip to the final was his third visit to Japan this year, after the G20 summit in June and the Tokyo International Conference on African Development in August.
• Joyful Japanese supporters thrilled Wales rugby fans on Twitter by dancing with leeks during the semifinal. Leeks are one of Wales's symbols along with the dragon, their team nickname.
• English captain Owen Farrell is English rugby's top social media earner, raking in £921 (R17,500) per Instagram post. However, football legend Cristiano Ronaldo pockets £780,000 for every post.
• Prince Charles had this to say about the Springboks before the Wales-SA semifinal: "They're bloody big buggers, aren't they?"
• Springbok Frans Steyn holds the record as the youngest member of a World Cup-winning squad. He was 20 when SA beat England in the 2007 final.
• Japanese administrators hope rugby fever will translate into a long-term love of the game. The country of 126-million has 92,000 registered rugby players - there are 10 times as many footballers - and only 1.5% of teenagers play the sport.
• Eddie Jones, who was part of the Bok coaching team at the time, still has Bryan Habana's 2007 World Cup blazer, given to him as a keepsake by the Springbok legend. "Maybe I'll wear it," teased Jones before the match. "I think it still fits me, I haven't put on that much weight since."
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