New Zealand captain Sam Cane became the first player to be red-carded in a Rugby World Cup final when he was judged to have performed a dangerous tackle on South Africa's Jesse Kriel in the first half of the match.

The 31-year-old was initially sin-binned but when the action was reviewed, as Cane sat pitchside, referee Wayne Barnes waved a red card towards him.

Cane sat in his seat looking astonished.

All Blacks flanker Shannon Frizell had been yellow-carded early on for a foul on hooker Bongi Mbonambi which saw the latter have to go off inside four minutes.

Prior to Saturday's match only one person had been yellow carded in a final -- New Zealand's Ben Smith in the 2015 victory over Australia. 

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