Planet Rugby has run through their predicted All Blacks lineup for the first Test against the Boks in Johannesburg, and the selections tell a clear story about how Dave Rennie is approaching the Springbok challenge. The big calls: Will Jordan drops to 15 only if McKenzie is ruled out, with Leroy Carter slotting onto the wing. Richie Mo'unga is confirmed absent for the opener, so Ruben Love keeps the 10 jersey. Rieko Ioane misses out entirely despite a strong tour, with Beauden Barrett preferred on the bench as the backup playmaker. Up front, the selection logic is explicitly shaped by the Springbok threat — Tupou Vaa'i at blindside for physicality and lineout muscle, Tuipulotu and Lord in the engine room for close-quarters grunt, and a deliberate all-Hurricanes front-row replacement unit on the bench to counter the Bomb Squad. Rennie is reportedly sticking to a 5-3 bench split, with Segner and Lakai as the loose forward cover.
All Blacks predicted XV for Ellis Park: Barrett back, Ioane out, and a Hurricanes-heavy bench
Planet Rugby predicts Rennie's All Blacks XV for Ellis Park — Barrett on the bench as the playmaker cover, Ioane out, and front-row selections explicitly designed to match the Springbok Bomb Squad. The piece breaks down the logic position by position.
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.