Former England No 8 Nick Easter reckons England have a realistic path to beating the Boks on Saturday, but it hinges on two things: disrupting Libbok at flyhalf before he can control the game, and finding a way to neutralise Nché at scrum time — a man Easter apparently rates highly enough to describe as a 'freak'. The full piece unpacks his tactical reasoning ahead of the Test.
AnalysisSpringboksSA Rugby Mag
Easter's blueprint: pressure Libbok, survive Nché
Nick Easter sees a route to an England upset, but only if they can pressure Libbok and manage Nché's scrumming dominance.
Related stories
Nché injury concern headlining Bok casualty list ahead of Scotland clash at Loftus
Rassie Erasmus is sweating over the fitness of Ox Nché, Siya Kolisi, Eben Etzebeth and André Esterhuizen ahead of Saturday's Nations Championship match against Scotland at Loftus, after all four picked up injuries during or before the 45-21 win over England at Ellis Park.
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.
Watson: Kolbe is England's biggest headache — but Bok versatility is the real danger
Watson names Kolbe as England's biggest individual concern but argues the Boks' real edge is their ability to change tactical identity based on which fly-half starts — a flexibility that makes them uniquely hard to prepare for.
Smith vows England will 'leave it all out there' against Springboks
Marcus Smith says England's 36-man squad, arriving in Johannesburg on Thursday, are targeting a historic win over the Springboks in the Nations Championship opener, having trained in oxygen masks to prepare for the Highveld.
The Ellis Park comeback that launched the Erasmus-Kolisi era
As England head back to Ellis Park in July, this piece revisits the 42-39 comeback win from 2018 that launched the Erasmus-Kolisi era — tracing why that match remains the defining origin point of South Africa's modern rugby dominance.