Luke Jacobson goes into the third Test openly critical of his own collision work from Cape Town — and that self-assessment is the centrepiece of this piece. The flanker, flourishing under Dave Rennie after years of injury disruption, frames the Springbok series as the definitive physical examination in world rugby, and the fact that he's coming up short of his own standards against them is clearly driving his preparation. His comments on the back-to-back nature of the series are interesting too: he notes that review and preview blur into one another when you're facing the same opponent three weeks running, and that winning is about finding 'small bits of gold' within tightly set systems. The piece also captures his awareness that a touring series of this kind — three consecutive Tests in South Africa — won't come around again in his career.
Jacobson flags collision work as his Test-series yardstick against the Boks
Jacobson is self-critical about his collision work from the Cape Town defeat and frames the Springboks as the hardest physical test in the game, while reflecting on the rarity of a three-Test tour to South Africa and what it means for his career.
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.