After the Bulls' 50-19 loss to the All Blacks at Loftus, Ackermann offered a candid post-mortem with an eye on the Test series. His core point: New Zealand's willingness to run from deep inside their own half — which worked handsomely against the Bulls — is a luxury the Boks simply won't afford them. Ackermann argues the Springboks will identify those moments as scoring opportunities rather than admiring the ambition, and that the All Blacks could find themselves in real trouble trying the same tricks. He also pinpoints patience as the key variable his own side lacked — had the Bulls been more composed with ball in hand, they could have converted more chances. It's a useful scouting lens ahead of the Ellis Park opener: the All Blacks arrive in form and confident, but Ackermann sees structural vulnerabilities in their style that the Boks are better equipped to punish than the franchises were.
Ackermann: All Blacks' attacking-from-deep won't fly against the Boks
Ackermann flags that the All Blacks' habit of attacking from deep — profitable on the franchise tour — will be exploited rather than tolerated by the Springboks, and points to patience with ball in hand as the tactical lever that decides the series opener.
- Vodacom Bulls
- New Zealand
- Loftus Versfeld
- Jake White
- Springboks
White: This Bulls squad is better equipped — and they know they can't waste this chance
Jake White makes a personnel-driven case for a Bulls upset on Friday, pointing to five returning Test-calibre starters as the difference from last year's final — while urging the squad to treat this as the chance they may not get again.
Hansen's Right to Back Himself — But the Boks' Five-Match Streak Tells a Different Story
Jean de Villiers acknowledges Hansen's logic but argues last year's results and performances make it hard to see the All Blacks closing the gap on the Boks — and the panel get genuinely animated over what a 2-2 series tiebreaker would even look like.
Jake White: Henry's All Blacks return is a 'masterстroke' — and he's no ordinary selector
White calls Henry's return a masterstroke — not because of his selector credentials, but because of the psychological and cultural weight he brings to a rebuilding All Blacks camp. White also makes a pointed broader argument about the game's failure to learn from history, using his own 2007 World Cup experience as a case study.
Keo & Zels: Stubborn All Blacks policy make Boks smile
The boys love that New Zealand keep picking their second-best, long may it continue.
All Blacks' loosehead crisis hands Springboks a ready-made weapon in Greatest Rivalry Series
Jeff Wilson has publicly identified loosehead prop as the All Blacks' most dangerous weakness ahead of four consecutive Tests against the Springboks — with Williams likely out, Tu'ungafasi's future uncertain, and the remaining options short on caps and experience. Set against the depth Erasmus has built across the prop positions, this piece maps out why scrum time could be where the Greatest Rivalry Series is decided.