With Rennie using the Bulls match as a final selection audition before Ellis Park, Planet Rugby breaks down where Saturday's game will be decided and what it means for the Test squad. The key battles are identified as the set-piece and gain-line — areas where the Bulls' front row, bolstered by new arrivals Liebenberg, Bosch, and Abrahams, can genuinely trouble the All Blacks. The Liebenberg vs Segner duel at openside gets particular attention, with Segner still in contention for the third loose forward slot against the Boks. The piece predicts an All Blacks win by 20, noting the familiar tour pattern of South African franchises competing hard for an hour before New Zealand's squad depth tells — but flags Loftus altitude and the late release of Grobbelaar and Louw as variables worth watching.
All Blacks expect their toughest tour test at Loftus before the Springbok series
A match preview and prediction for Bulls vs All Blacks at Loftus, framed around Rennie's final selection push before the Springbok Tests — with analysis of the set-piece battle, key head-to-heads, and an All Blacks win by 20 predicted.
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- New Zealand
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- Loftus Versfeld
Boks remain top but All Blacks close gap to 2.90 points after Nations Championship opener
South Africa stay top of the World Rugby Men's Rankings at 93.94 points but New Zealand have cut the gap to 2.90 after beating France, while Scotland climb to equal their all-time high of fifth following a record 47-38 win over Argentina in Córdoba.
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.
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.
Stephen Donald: Robertson copied the Boks — Rennie must go back to All Blacks DNA
Stephen Donald backs Hansen's anti-copycat argument, saying Robertson erred by chasing the Springbok blueprint rather than New Zealand's tempo-based strengths — and expects Rennie to correct that course ahead of a blockbuster four-Test series in South Africa.