France survived a remarkable Springboks fightback to claim a dramatic 21-19 victory in Paris.
Les Bleus raced into a 21-7 lead, with Aaron Grandidier-Nkanang, Théo Attissogbe and Louis Bielle-Biarrey crossing the whitewash.
Maxime Lucu converted all three tries as the hosts took control.
South Africa hit back through Jan-Hendrik Wessels before Cobus Reinach and Malcolm Marx crossed in the second half.
However, Manie Libbok missed a late conversion that would have brought the scores level.
France held on to secure a memorable victory despite coming under enormous pressure from the Springboks' powerful replacements.
The result gives Les Bleus a major boost ahead of their clash with Argentina, while South Africa must regroup before facing Ireland.
Here are our France player ratings from a bruising encounter in Paris.
France player ratings vs South Africa
1. Jean-Baptiste Gros – 7.5/10
Gros put up a solid performance in the French front row, contributing physically in the scrum and working hard around the field. He handled his defence responsibilities well and helped France maintain their insensity during the opening exchanges.
2. Julien Marchand – N/A
Marchand was a late withdrawal from the starting lineup and therefore did not feature in the match.
3. Sipili Falatea – 7/10
Falatea delivered a decent performance in the front row, providing France with physicality in the scrum and contributing greatly around the contact area. He was involved in the forward exchanges and helped France compete against a powerful Springbok pack.
