On a recent Australian podcast, former Wallaby Matt Giteau said losing a dynamic player like Cheslin Kolbe was detrimental but what he noticed is that South Africa's attack instantly looked better than all the other games with Libbok and that in his opinion Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu plays better when there's another ten on the field which allows him to just play. And it's weird to him considering how dynamic Cheslin is.

But it's not weird, because Sacha is not a distributor, he's not a playmaker. He's a secondary playmaker. And despite being surrounded by dynamism, he lacks the ability to incorporate them and utilize them on the contrary (emphasis). That's why Damian Willemse can't express himself because he needs to take responsibility and be the calm head. But with Manie Libbok he gets M.O.T.M because he's free. This is something the Stormers management identified and never gave Sacha the keys to ten until he demanded it and with Rassie playing him there, they had no choice.

Nonetheless, Rassie's always had a preference for centres at ten.

Our super computer has crunched the numbers and we say the Boks will take this one. Boks by 3, it's going to be a tight final test. AB's playing for pride, Boks playing for a series win!

Here Rassie gives his own reasoning and thinking.

Manie is a good 10 but you guys have such a big hate boner you missing the bigger picture and context.

Here from the greatest Springbok coach himself and I am sure many of you will still think he is wrong…

Saru should expand the currie cup to a 14 team round robin tournament and add quarter finals. 13 games and 3 knock out rounds. The 4 URC teams would obviously still play with mostly u23 squad players but have them bring in their urc teams for the quarters, semis and finals. So the league phase would be a development tournament (for the urc teams) and then the knockout can have a more premier feel to it. It would allow the smaller unions to play against URC players in the knockouts and it would give the URC unions a chance to win it giving the competition some sort of credibility.

So the urc teams only need to play 3 rounds if they make the final and if their development squad can ensure a top 8 finish. And the development team would play 13 games.(the development teams played 13 games this season with 7 currie cup and 6 u23 cup matches)

It would also give smaller unions more exposure and income to stay professional and develop more players

Let me preface by saying I fucking love Deon the bicentennial man Fourie. He’s been overlooked throughout his career and always steps up in the big moments. That said, does Rassie have every intention of having him on the plane to Aus in 2027? I’ll say he’s performed better than JHw did in the first test. But I’m also confused why Grobbies has gotten left out entirely. Deon plays a different role because he can cover both open side and hooker, but if you have Andre and Hanekom on the bench then that is more than enough coverage. I’m not saying he doesn’t deserve to be in the team atm but I’m just questioning are we truly getting depth when the other guys aren’t getting time in these high pressure games.

​The atmosphere over the past few weeks has been unbelievable. Looking at sold-out crowds packed into world-class venues like Ellis Park, Cape Town Stadium, and FNB Stadium it’s impossible to ignore the reality: rugby culture hits differently here.

​World Rugby made a massive mistake passing on 2023 and 2027. Watching the All Blacks and Boks tear into each other on South African soil in front of electric crowds just showed the world what a global tournament here would feel like.

​Bring the World Cup back home. We are more than ready.

Anyone else have the stripes on the side and back of their 2019 jersey peel/fall off?

What did you do to fix it? Or do you just go with it?

This reaction from Marx - the hand gesture, the smirk - said so much about the confidence and belief of the boks. They were behind on the scoreboard at this point in the game and yet this was the attitude being displayed. It was "Ja boet, we're coming for you".

86 000 spectators screaming, huge pressure on the field, the home series in the balance, reputations on the line, and Marx looks like he's having so much fun.

As a Kiwi I’m now starting to appreciate all the respect shown by SA fans toward us during the peak of the ABs years ago. It’s tough to be on the side that loses more than it wins in this rivalry 😅 All nations have toxic fans, but I’ve always found that SA have just as many that are fair-minded, and incredibly generous in their praise. I’ve also noticed that a lot of Kiwis (including myself) struggle to show the same kind of admiration and respect in return since the tables have turned. Hopefully we will get better in that regard. Your team is obviously insanely good, and deep down, under all the frustration and hurt, I’m happy for you. Much love ❤️

I was surprised that this never got looked at. Cheslin leaves the field for a head injury assessment. It follows that his head made contact with something. Well, it was the forearm/elbow of Luke Jacobsen.

Rule 9 Foul Play
Dangerous play
Rule 9.11Players must not do anything that is reckless or dangerous to others including leading with the elbow or forearm, or jumping into, or over, a tackler.

Lets up the ante and pick our most dangerous backline.

9.MvdB

10.Manie

11.Hooker

12.Willemse

13.Moodie

14.KLA

15.SFM

Who's with me?

​

Despite a convincing and deserved win by the Black Ferns, yesterday's match showed positives for the Springbok Women.

The match must be viewed in context:

- The Black Ferns are ranked number 2 in the world and have been a tier 1 team for decades

- The Springbok Women are ranked number 10 and have been a tier 2 team since their inception just over 20 years ago.

- New Zealand has a strong domestic competition, while South Africa is still developing a high-level competition.

All current senior players debuted in 2018, following a 4-year absence from international play after SARU withdrew the team post-2014 RWC due to uncompetitiveness. Only in recent years have youth players, developed through post-2014 programs, joined the senior squad.

The coaches view the perfomance in context of progress based on the 2025 RWC quarterfinal against New Zealand, the recent tour to Fiji, and the visit from the USA team.

Frustrating errors occurred: missed tackles, a malfunctioning lineout, and slow support play. These issues cannot be excused by context and require improvement.

However, the dominant forward play was something to be proud of and should be built upon. There were also strong individual players.

When judging the team, we should focus on progress rather than the outcome of a single match.

When I saw Deon Fourie in tears while singing the anthem that was the moment I knew we were going to win this! Fourie just has this aura! What a player. What a series. Bring on Test #4

You guys put on a hell of a series at home, we couldn’t quite get the intensity right today.

Onto the bonus match next week.