Sean Fitzpatrick's message ahead of the Soweto Test is simple — the All Blacks should stay out of the verbal crossfire between Rennie and Erasmus and concentrate on execution. With the scrum controversy still simmering after Rennie's post-Cape Town comments and Daan Human's media rebuttal, Fitzpatrick declined to take sides on the scrummaging debate, admitting he hadn't watched closely enough to have a view. His broader read on the series is that both sides are evenly matched and that the result will hinge on who limits errors and capitalises on opportunities — much as the Boks did in the first half of the second Test. He's also framing the series as ideal World Cup preparation for a New Zealand side that overhauled its coaching structure less than a year out from France.
Fitzpatrick to All Blacks: Tune out Rassie, focus on the rugby
Fitzpatrick urges the All Blacks to ignore the Rennie-Erasmus noise ahead of the Soweto decider, rates both sides as evenly matched, and sees the series as exactly the World Cup preparation New Zealand needs.
- New Zealand
- Rassie Erasmus
- Springboks
- Rugby World Cup
Tony Brown to join All Blacks backroom staff in 2028 after Springbok contract ends
NZR have confirmed Tony Brown will join the All Blacks' backroom staff in 2028 on a two-year contract, with the Springboks attack coach set to depart after the 2027 Rugby World Cup. It is the third time NZR have pursued Brown, having previously been rejected during the Foster and Robertson eras.
Brown confirms post-2027 All Blacks move but eyes World Cup glory with Boks first
Springbok attack coach Tony Brown will join Dave Rennie's All Blacks staff from 2028, but remains committed to helping South Africa win a third successive World Cup title before his departure.
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.
Mulder's '95 Warning: Don't Sleep on the All Blacks
1995 World Cup winner Japie Mulder warns against writing off the All Blacks ahead of the four-Test series, drawing on South Africa's own underdog story to argue the gap in rankings doesn't guarantee a comfortable series win.