The bromance ends on Saturday at Twickenham, 4 p.m. local time.
The degree of genuine friendship and respect between New Zealand and South Africa, from the head coaches down, has been a revelation. Dinner before matches, beers in the dressing room afterward. It's all very mature, and probably what all sport should be like.
But just when you think, in the buildup to a Rugby World Cup semifinal, the mutual admiration might be going on too long, mutual destruction was assured.
All Blacks coach Steve Hansen called out his old mate "H'' - Heyneke Meyer - for his gushing praise of the New Zealand team this week by saying it was a tactic, and they weren't lulled by it. While the All Blacks had a deep respect for Meyer's Springboks, Hansen added, they also had a healthy dose of fear.
He put it this way: "Going into a fight, if you don't fear the guy you're fighting, you're either fighting the wrong bloke or you're stupid. That fear heightens everything. It makes sure that all your emotions are in the right place, so you can actually deliver the performance you need to. Whilst you respect people, there is a fear factor in this game, because if you don't win, you don't get the prize you want, which is to reach the final."
Hansen was harking to that old adage about how the All Blacks fear losing. It still applies. No team hates losing or has tasted it less often than the defending champions. That's why more often than not, wins are greeted with relief first, then joy.
Expectations on them have multiplied with each step closer to fulfilling their quest to become the first team to successfully retain the World Cup, the first to win it three times, and the first All Blacks squad to win it away from home.
Meanwhile, the Springboks are also in a good place. They have achieved par for the tournament. This has been far from a banner year for the last-place finisher in the Rugby Championship, and particularly after the nadir of losing to Japan in their opening match, to reach the semifinals is a credible achievement. Their mindset has changed from last weekend. In the quarterfinal against Wales, they were slight favourites. This weekend, they are the slight underdog. It's a good place to be in.
They have also successfully reverted to reputation: Running straight at the defence over and over until something breaks. Against Wales, loose forwards Schalk Burger, Duane Vermuelen, and Francois Louw hammered away, and young centres Jess Kriel and Damian de Allende tried the same with a little more subtlety.
The plan left out wingers Bryan Habana and JP Pietersen, and to an extent fullback Willie le Roux, who hardly received the ball. Habana, tied atop the all-time World Cup try-scoring list with All Blacks great Jonah Lomu, contributed in defence. Pietersen got over the gainline four times, made one break, and carried a total of 39 metres. Burger seemed to run that much in the first quarter.
It wasn't pretty, and Wales contained them due to a rush defence and expert poaching. But, typically, Wales was undone at the very end by, also typically, a moment of brilliance hatched between Fourie du Preez and Vermuelen.
Not long after, the All Blacks so demoralized France, that the Tricolors capitulated in Cardiff. France helped the All Blacks look good, but the sight of locks making chargedowns and galloping 30 metres, props bursting through gaps and offloading like Sonny Bill Williams, loose forwards making like wingers, and wingers making like Jonah Lomu was exhilarating.
Hansen admitted it's been difficult this week to prepare the All Blacks after such a resounding victory, but he believes they've brought the team back to earth, and turned the focus squarely on their arch foe.
His banter with Meyer has helped. They have an understanding where the winner buys the non-winner a beer because, as Hansen says, "losing sucks."
Because of the occasion, Meyer promised to buy a case if the Springboks win. But on Saturday night, the beer ought to be on Hansen.
This content appears as provided to The Globe by the originating wire service. It has not been edited by Globe staff.