Murray Mexted's read on the 3-1 series defeat in South Africa is that it was painful but necessary — and that Rennie is already acting on what he saw. Mexted's core point is that Super Rugby is a misleading benchmark for international rugby, and that several All Blacks players who looked the part at franchise level were found out against the Boks. With only 18 months to a World Cup, Rennie has been rotating aggressively, and Mexted believes the culling of players who don't make the grade is already quietly underway. The Bledisloe win over Australia steadied the ship, but Mexted puts that in context — he reckons Rennie's squad still needs to find another 10–15% to be genuine World Cup contenders, and that the South Africa tour, for all its damage to the win column, gave Rennie the information he needed.
Murray Mexted: Springboks series did Rennie a favour by exposing All Blacks' gaps
Mexted argues the 3-1 series loss to the Boks was a necessary education for Rennie — exposing players who can't make the step up from Super Rugby and fast-tracking a squad cull ahead of the World Cup.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Rassie's Nations Championship reckoning: the July squads that will shape RWC 2027
A demographic deep-dive into the seven leading RWC 2027 contenders argues the Nations Championship compresses the selection cycle by a year, placing Erasmus at the sharpest decision point: defend the title with the 2023 spine or finally acknowledge the cost of carrying an ageing pack into Australian conditions.