Planet Rugby's player ratings from the 17-10 win over Argentina paint a picture of a starting lineup that was inconsistent at best — handling errors, lineout wobbles, and a stuttering attack — rescued by a Bomb Squad that brought the physicality and direction the first team couldn't sustain. Hanekom (8) was the standout of the starters, backing up his first number eight start with a try, strong breakdown work, and the energy to justify the faith placed in him. Van der Merwe (8) was relentless on the wing, but beyond those two, the backline in particular was underwhelming — Feinberg-Mngomezulu subdued on his return from injury, Reinach hit-and-miss, and Fassi error-prone. The bigger concern is Kolisi's hamstring, which ended his afternoon after just 25 minutes and has the coaching staff sweating ahead of the All Blacks series. The replacements — Van Staden, Dixon, Wiese, Pollard, and Van den Berg — collectively earned an 8 and were the primary reason the Boks held on.
Bomb Squad bails out a patchy Bok starting XV against Argentina
Planet Rugby's player-by-player ratings reveal a Bok starting XV that needed rescuing — Hanekom and Van der Merwe the exceptions — with Kolisi's hamstring scare the headline concern heading into the All Blacks series.
Kolisi treats Barbarians clash as a full Test match ahead of Gqeberha opener
Siya Kolisi insists the Springboks are treating Saturday's Barbarians clash in Gqeberha as a full Test match, with internal competition, positional battles and the season opener's importance all cited as the camp's driving forces.
Erasmus: winning stays non-negotiable, whatever the World Cup build-up demands
Erasmus has made his 2025 season intent explicit: rotation and World Cup-building happen inside a framework where winning remains the non-negotiable baseline. The piece breaks down what that means for squad management, the veterans' standing, and why the All Blacks series carries extra weight.
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.
Syndesmosis injury could keep Feinberg-Mngomezulu out for three months
Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu faces a three-month absence after suffering a syndesmosis injury in the Stormers' URC quarter-final win over Cardiff, potentially ruling him out of the Nations Championship Tests and part of the All Blacks series.
Keo & Zels: Stubborn All Blacks policy make Boks smile
The boys love that New Zealand keep picking their second-best, long may it continue.