There are no friendlies in rugby, especially when it comes to these two. Will Reilly & Alan Marron look ahead to Saturday’s first test between South Africa and New Zealand.
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Why is the Springboks and the All Blacks Rugby’s greatest rivalry?
The First Test between South Africa and New Zealand will take place in Johannesburg on Saturday, August 22.
Three more Tests will then take place on the following three Saturdays, the first of them set for Cape Town, followed by Johannesburg again, then, rather incongruously, Baltimore in the USA.
Rugby Union is deeply ingrained into the culture and psyche of these two nations, who are currently ranked as numbers one and two in the world. Not for nothing is this series being billed as ‘Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry’.
Many conversations about these nations begin with the 1995 Rugby World Cup final. On home soil, South Africa beat New Zealand 15-12 in a tense encounter. The picture of Nelson Mandela dancing with the Springbok captain Francois Pienaar after the Webb Ellis Trophy had been presented is iconic.
The fact that New Zealand returned to South Africa the following year to beat them 2-1 in a Test Series drove the story of their rivalry to even greater heights.
Prior to that success, New Zealand had never won a Test series in South Africa. These sides first played out a series in 1921.
South Africa and New Zealand have won the last five Rugby World Cups between them.
They recently signed up to meet each other in a Test series every four years.
Match schedule:
- First Test – Sat Aug 22, Ellis Park, Johannesburg
- Second Test – Sat Aug 29, Cape Town Stadium
- Third Test – Sat Sept 5, FNB Stadium, Johannesburg
- Fourth Test – Sat Sept 12, M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore, USA
Team News
Ox Nche has been named in the Springboks starting XV despite facing late doubts over his fitness, while Siya Kolisi misses out. Pieter-Steph du Toit will captain South Africa in Kolisi’s absence.
New Zealand have suffered another injury setback, with prop Ollie Norris ruled out with a knee injury and replaced in the squad by Saula Ma’u.
Dave Rennie has also made a big call by leaving Beauden Barrett out of the matchday 23, with Ruben Love selected to start at fly-half.
For South Africa, Handre Pollard is unavailable, meaning Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu gets the nod at fly-half, with Manie Libbok named among the replacements.
Springboks: 15 Damian Willemse, 14 Cheslin Kolbe, 13 Jesse Kriel, 12 Damian de Allende, Kurt-Lee Arendse, 10 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, 9 Grant Williams, 8 Jasper Wiese, 7 Pieter-Steph du Toit (captain), 6 Paul de Villiers, 5 Ruan Nortje, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Wilco Louw, 2 Malcolm Marx, 1 Ox Nche
Replacements: 16 Jan-Hendrik Wessels, 17 Gerhard Steenekamp, 18 Zachary Porthen, 19 Cobus Wiese, 20 Andre Esterhuizen, 21 Marco van Staden, 22 Cobus Reinach, 23 Manie Libbok
All Blacks: 15 Damian McKenzie, 14 Will Jordan, 13 Quinn Tupaea, 12 Jordie Barrett, 11 Josh Moorby, 10 Ruben Love, 9 Cam Roigard, 8 Ardie Savea (captain), 7 Luke Jacobson, 6 Tupou Vaa’i, 5 Fabian Holland, 4 Josh Lord, 3 Tyrel Lomax, 2 Codie Taylor, 1 Ethan de Groot
Replacements: 16 Asafo Aumua, 17 George Bower, 18 Fletcher Newell, 19 Anton Segner, 20 Peter Lakai, 21 Kyle Preston, 22 Anton Lienert-Brown, 23 Leroy Carter
Players to watch
The power of the forwards on each side is awesome, but there will also be plenty of flair on view.
South Africa
Sacha Feinburg-Mngomezulu: fly-half; has recovered from ankle surgery; the ‘golden boy’ of South African rugby
Ox Nché; prop; a hugely popular figure in South African rugby; both powerful and mobile
Cheslin Kolbe: Considered too small to make it early in his career, he has become a world-class winger; he recently won his 50th cap for the Springboks and has recorded 22 tries at Test level.
Eben Etzebeth: lock; huge and mobile, he will return to action for the Test series
Pieter-Steph du Toit: blind-side flanker; a legendary figure in South Africa.
New Zealand
Will Jordan: full-back; he rose quickly to the top; in 57 Tests, he has scored 51 tries, which is an All Black record, which he set in July; Doug Howlett had held the record of 49 for 19 years.
Ardea Savea: flanker who recently celebrated his 100th cap; still quick and powerful at 31 years of age
Beauden Barrett: fly-half; 146 Tests and 834 points says plenty about his ability and longevity
Ruben Love: fly-half; calm and capable, as he has shown in recent matches when given his chance; Barrett’s likely successor
Jordie Barrett: 81 Tests, 25 tries. 6’5” tall, 16 stone; 29 years of age; a formidable player
How to watch
The first test between South Africa and New Zealand kicks off at 16:10 (UK/Irish time) on Saturday, August 22. The test match is live on Sky Sports Action and Sky Sports+ with live streaming available on Sky Go.
Prediction
This game will be a battle from start to finish, with both sides having the players to score tries. Cheslin Kolbe caught the eye in the opening Nations Championship games, scoring a couple of tries against England in a 45-21 victory. The Springboks also had victories against Scotland, Wales and Argentina as a prep for this bigger task.
New Zealand, on the other hand, have had prep games against Stormers, Sharks and Bulls and won all three, which they were entitled to do. Jordie Barrett was one of two players to catch the eye along with Fehi Fineanganofo.
South Africa may just edge it in the end, but it will be a titanic tussle as ever.
Verdict: South Africa 36-29 New Zealand
Best Bets
Winning Margin: South Africa 6-10pts (Was 4/1, NOW 6/1)
Anytime Tryscorers: Cheslin Kolbe (RSA) (11/10) & Jordie Barrett (NZ) (4/1)
