SPRINGBOKS VS. ALL BLACKS | RUGBY’S GREATES RIVALRY

 

ALL BLACKS VS. SPRINGBOKS | ALL-TIME RIVALRY RETURNS TO SOUTH AFRICA | ELLIS PARK | FULL GAME

 

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SPRINGBOKS TIE SERIES 1-1 | RUGBY’S GREATEST RIVALRY

 FULL-TIME | 🇿🇦 Springboks 33 - 26 All Blacks 🇳🇿

The Boks hold on in a nail-biter to draw the series level at 1-1!

SPRINGBOKS STARTING LINEUP VS. ALL BLACKS

 

ALL BLACKS BLOW SPRINGBOKS AWAY AT ELLIS PARK WITH FIERY SECOND-HALF BLITZ

 

All Blacks lock Fabian Holland charges down Springbok scrumhalf Grant Williams' kick.

Image: Backpagepix

The All Blacks produced a fantastic second-half performance to smash the Springboks 33-16 in the first Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry Test at Ellis Park in Johannesburg on Saturday.

The All Blacks found themselves on the ropes towards the end of the first half, with their scrum under pressure and the penalties piling up. However, after going into half-time 13–12 in arrears, they outplayed the Boks to take first blood in the four-match series.

Cheslin Kolbe, who was given the kicking duties on the night, gave the Springboks the lead in the fifth minute from a penalty.

The Springboks’ rush defence put the All Blacks under massive pressure early, but the visitors managed to get into the Springboks’ 22 after some ill-discipline from the South Africans.

The home side conceded a plethora of penalties and ended up with an All Blacks lineout on their own 22. Wing Will Jordan went over from close range to give the Kiwis the lead.

However, the Springboks hit back straight away when replacement back André Esterhuizen thundered his way over the line shortly after replacing wing Kurt-Lee Arendse.

Josh Moorby scored the All Blacks’ second try, before Kolbe gave the Boks back the lead.

The South Africans camped out in the All Blacks’ 22 towards the end of the half, but the visitors survived to go into the break unscathed.

Kolbe kicked another penalty to stretch the Springboks’ lead to four points. But, while the Boks had scrum dominance at the start of the second half, they couldn’t convert their dominance.

The All Blacks then started to get parity in the scrum after the Boks replaced Ox Nché. The All Blacks then scored three second-half tries to blow the Boks away, who ended the game with 13 players on the field.

Fabian Holland, Luke Jacobson and Jordan all went over in the second half to kill off the Boks, who now have their work cut out for them to get back in the series next week in Cape Town.

Point-scorers:

Springboks — Tries: André Esterhuizen. Conversions: Cheslin Kolbe. Penalties: Kolbe (2).

All Blacks — Tries: Will Jordan (2), Josh Moorby, Fabian Holland, Luke Jacobson. Conversions: Ruben Love (4).

- IOL

SPRINGBOKS V ALL BLACKS: LAST FIVE TESTS

WELLINGTON, NEW ZEALAND - SEPTEMBER 13: Damian Willemse of South Africa celebrates after scoring a try during The Rugby Championship match between New Zealand All Blacks and South Africa Springboks at Sky Stadium on September 13, 2025 in Wellington, New Zealand. (Photo by Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images)

The Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series shifts into top gear this weekend, with the Springboks hosting the All Blacks at Ellis Park, Johannesburg, in the first of four Tests.

New Zealand have concluded their run-outs against three of the four South African franchises, beating the Stormers, Sharks, and the Bulls over the last two weeks, while the Lions will get their chance against the men in black at the same iconic venue on August 25.

While this marks New Zealand’s first tour of South Africa in 30 years, this fiercest of sporting rivalries is anything but new.

South African toured New Zealand for the first time in 1921, and in the 110 Tests played between them, the All Blacks have won 63, while the Springboks have beaten them 43 times. Four Tests have ended in a draw.

The two iconic sides have won seven of the 10 world cups since the tournament began in 1987, with South Africa lifting the Web Ellis a record four times, while New Zealand have claimed the global top-podium spot on three occasions. Two of those finals have been played between the two teams, with South Africa winning both.

While the All Blacks hold an overall 57 percent success rate over the Springboks, there has been a major shift in the Rassie Erasmus era, with the Boks winning seven of their 11 Tests since the 2019 world cup in Japan.

With so much history between these age-old rivals and more history possibly to be made during this tour, we look at the five most recent results between South Africa and New Zealand.

September 13, 2025: All Blacks 10 Springboks 43, Wellington

South Africa ran in six tries – five of them in the second half – to dismantle the hosts in a shocking one-sided affair at Sky Stadium.

While the Boks dominated territory in the opening 40, they only had a Cheslin Kolbe intercept try to show for it and went into the break trailing 10-7, but they were ruthless after switching sides and kept the All Blacks scoreless in the second half, while they ran in five more tries.

The All Blacks assault in Wellington marked their biggest-ever victory against their rivals and the biggest defeat for the All Blacks on home soil. The result also saw the Boks retain the Freedom Cup while moving back to the top of the World Rugby rankings.

What made the performance even more impressive was how the Boks regrouped after their Eden Park defeat the previous week and the wholesale changes that were made to the squad. Youngsters were given the license to thrill. Add in there the injuries the visitors sustained in the first half in Wellington and how they emptied the bench even before the end of the third quarter, and the result becomes even more remarkable.

It was also the game that should have convinced the rugby world about the Boks’ attacking venom.

September 6, 2025: All Blacks 24- 17 Springboks, Auckland

Going into the clash, the Boks had been winless at Eden Park since 1937, and it remained that way, while New Zealand extended their long-standing record at the venue.

The All Blacks had been unbeaten in 50 Tests (including two draws) at their Eden Park bastion prior to this contest and added one more win to that streak, while the result snapped the Boks’ four-match winning run against them.

Ardie Savea produced a moment worthy of the occasion in his 100th Test for the All Blacks when he won a turnover with one minute to time to negate the spirited Springbok second-half fightback which saw the traveling team come back from 17-3 down at half time.

The result piled the pressure on the Springboks’ Rugby Championship title defence after three rounds.

September 7, 2024: Springboks 18 – 12 All Blacks, Cape Town

The result was a massive one for South Africa for a number of reasons – it marked the first time since 1949 that they beat New Zealand four times on the bounce and their first time winning the Freedom Cup since 2009, while it also all but secured them the Rugby Championship title for the first time since 2019, when the Boks became the first country to win the Sanzaar-governed competition and the world cup in the same year.

The Springboks trailed 3-9 at half-time at Cape Town Stadium and scored the only two tries of the match to claim an 18-12 victory in an absolute thriller of a clash to remain unbeaten in the Rugby Championship after four rounds.

South Africa led by a single point in the 70th minute, but Damian McKenzie flopped a straightforward penalty kick, allowing the Boks to exit after the All Black hooked his kick.

August 31, 2024: Springboks 31 – 27 All Blacks, Johannesburg

Drama lacked not in this blockbuster.

From the airplane flyover during the haka to the fantastic smash-and-grab by the Boks, this match had it all.

South Africa simply had no business winning this game.

The All Blacks had the upper hand in the most of the stats charts and dominated territory and possession, but they conceded more breakdown penalties against a Springbok team that just refused to go down.

And that was the difference, the home side’s relentless determination to keep up the fight.

New Zealand led by 27 points to 17 with just 11 minutes remaining before South Africa orchestrated a fantastic late surge in Round Three of the Rugby Championship.

It was a battle for the books, and while the All Blacks fell victim to some of their errors, the Boks rose above theirs in the Ellis Park epic and showed exactly why, with them, it’s never over till it’s over.

Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu contributed 16 points in the form of penalties and conversions, while the Bomb Squad injected some potency with Kwagga Smith scoring after a lineout maul was stopped metres from the line before Grant Williams burst over after another maul was stopped in its tracks.

With the win, the Boks tightened their grip on the Rugby Championship.

October 28, 2023: Springboks 12 – 11 All Blacks, Saint-Denis (France World Cup)

Not much needs to be said about why this match was a historic one.

While the Springboks gilded the pages of their stacked history books with a record fourth world cup title, All Blacks skipper Sam Cane became the first player to be red-carded in a world cup final.

But that was perhaps not as decisive as one would expect as the Boks also lost two players to yellow cards.

The All Blacks scored the only try of the match in the 58th minute courtesy of Beauden Barrett, which was the first time in their four finals that the Boks had conceded a try. That alone might have suggested that the night wouldn’t end favourably for the South Africans, but this is a team that knows nothing of a white flag and in no other contest did they make it clearer than on that icy night in Saint-Denis.

Handré Pollard scored all his team’s points with four first-half penalties while Pieter-Steph du Toit single-handedly put together the study guide on colossal defence in a performance that epitomised “big match temperament”.

No words can do the kind of determination and character that the Boks embodied on that night justice.

- Wynona Louw

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SIYA KOLISI | 100 CAPS MILESTONE | SPRINGBOKS

 

BREAKING: SPRINGBOKS NAME POWERFUL TEAM FOR FRANCE BATTLE

Damian Willemse returns from injury to start at fullback in a strong Springbok team that’s set to celebrate Siya Kolisi’s 100th Test cap.

The Springboks are braced for battle against France on Saturday. Image: SA Rugby

Siya Kolisi will become the ninth Springbok centurion when he leads South Africa out against France at the Stade de France in Paris on Saturday.

Rassie Erasmus – who will guide the side in his 50th Test as head coach – has made six personnel changes to the side that defeated Japan last week.

This massive feat for Kolisi and Erasmus adds to a string of remarkable achievements, which include winning back-to-back Rugby World Cups and Rugby Championship titles, as well as the British & Irish Lions series.

Erasmus has selected Boan Venter to replace the injured Ox Nche at loosehead prop, while Thomas du Toit (tighthead prop), Eben Etzebeth (lock), Pieter-Steph du Toit (flanker) and Damian Willemse (utility back) all return to the starting line-up.

The only change amongst the replacements sees RG Snyman (lock) move from the starting team to the bench in place of Kwagga Smith (loose forward), who is carrying a niggle.

This will see Venter, Malcolm Marx (hooker), and Thomas du Toit pack down in the front row, while Etzebeth will join forces with Lood de Jager in the engine room.

Erasmus made only two changes to the backline. Willemse starts at fullback in place of Cheslin Kolbe, who moves to his regular position at wing with Kurt-Lee Arendse, while the experienced centre pairing of Damian de Allende and Jesse Kriel will man the midfield, and halfbacks Cobus Reinach and Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu are set to dictate play at halfback.

The Bulls trio of Johan Grobbelaar, Gerhard Steenekamp, and Wilco Louw will again serve as the back-up front row, along with locks Snyman, Ruan Nortje, and hybrid player Andre Esterhuizen. The two backline players on the bench are Grant Williams and Manie Libbok.

Eleven players in the team participated in the Springboks’ narrow RWC quarter-final victory over Les Bleus at the same venue two years ago – Etzebeth, Kolisi, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Snyman, Reinach, Arendse, Kolbe, Kriel, De Allende, Willemse, and Libbok.

SPRINGBOK TEAM TO FACE FRANCE IN PARIS:

15 Damian Willemse (DHL Stormers) – 45 caps, 66 pts (6t, 9c, 4p, 2 dg)

14 Cheslin Kolbe (Tokyo Sungoliath) – 47 caps, 126 pts (21t, 3c, 5p)

13 Jesse Kriel (Canon Eagles) – 85 caps, 100 pts (20t)

12 Damian de Allende (Wild Knights) – 94 caps, 55 pts (11t)

11 Kurt-Lee Arendse (Vodacom Bulls) – 28 caps, 115 pts (23t)

10 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu (DHL Stormers) – 16 caps, 120 pts (5t, 31c, 11p)

9 Cobus Reinach (DHL Stormers) – 47 caps, 85 pts (17t)

8 Jasper Wiese (Urayasu D-Rocks) – 40 caps, 10 pts (2t)

7 Pieter-Steph du Toit (Toyota Verblitz) – 93 caps, 70 pts (14t)

6 Siya Kolisi (captain, Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 99 caps, 70 pts (14t)

5 Lood de Jager (Wild Knights) – 72 caps, 25 pts (5t)

4 Eben Etzebeth (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 138 caps, 35 pts (7t)

3 Thomas du Toit (Bath) – 30 caps, 5 pts (1t)

2 Malcolm Marx (Kubota Spears) – 85 caps, 135 pts (27t)

1 Boan Venter (Edinburgh) – 5 caps, 5 pts (1t)

Replacements:

16 Johan Grobbelaar (Vodacom Bulls) – 4 caps, 0 pts

17 Gerhard Steenekamp (Vodacom Bulls) – 12 caps, 5 pts (1t)

18 Wilco Louw (Vodacom Bulls) – 25 caps, 5 pts (1t)

19 RG Snyman (Leinster) – 47 caps, 15 points (3t)

20 Ruan Nortje (Vodacom Bulls) – 14 caps, 0 pts

21 Andre Esterhuizen (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 25 caps, 15 pts (3t)

22 Grant Williams (Hollywoodbets Sharks) – 25 caps, 25 pts (5t)

23 Manie Libbok (Kintetsu Liners) – 25 caps, 141 pts (2t, 46c, 13p)

STATS AND FACTS:

Springbok record against France:

Played 46; Won 28; Lost 12; Drawn 6. Points for: 994, Points against: 720. Tries scored 111, Tries conceded 64. Highest score 52-10; Biggest win 42 points. Win % 61%.

- Craig Lewis

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