With the Greatest Rivalry series decider set for Baltimore's Ravens Stadium, Jan de Koning runs a detailed side-by-side comparison of both squads against their 2023 World Cup Final lineups — and the contrasts are stark. The Boks have retained remarkable continuity despite losing 14 players from Paris through injury and retirement, with nine survivors starting again in Baltimore and the broader team structure largely intact. New Zealand, by contrast, have undergone a wholesale rebuild under Rennie, driven by retirements, overseas moves, and an injury crisis that has stripped out most of their 2023 leadership group.
The experience gap is the headline number: South Africa's matchday 23 totals 1,204 Test caps to New Zealand's 741, with the Bok starting pack alone nearly matching the All Blacks' entire starting XV. Erasmus fields 14 players over 30, averaging 32 years across the XV; Rennie's starting lineup averages just 26. Mo'unga returns at 10 to provide some veteran ballast, but with Savea and Jacobson both injured in Soweto, the All Blacks' back row is built around Lakai (13 caps) and Blackadder (14 caps) — a significant ask against this Springbok forward unit. The piece is worth reading for the full cap-by-cap breakdown and the broader succession-planning argument it builds.