Nick Mallett sees a genuine threat building under Dave Rennie. His read on the Nations Championship campaign is nuanced — the All Blacks were shaky against France and poor in the first half against Italy, but their performance against Ireland was a different level, and Mallett argues that should serve as the blueprint for what's coming at the Boks. The concern isn't brute physicality but the All Blacks' ability to stay connected through contact — stepping, offloading, keeping ball-in-hand momentum — precisely the style that punishes a defensive system that tackles high. Mallett is direct: if the Boks' defence doesn't shut down time and space early, Rennie's side will be dangerous. He also notes Rennie's honeymoon effect — no coach gets scrutinised when he's winning — but credits the genuine alignment he's built around Savea. Despite the Boks' clear edge over the last two years, Mallett expects a complicated series rather than a comfortable one.