AFP's three-point review of the inaugural Nations Championship's southern hemisphere leg finds the Springboks in a commanding position — convincing wins over England, Scotland and a scoreless Wales, with Erasmus using the matches to blood new talent, including 20-year-old Vusi Moyo at flyhalf. The Boks sit joint-top with the All Blacks on 15 points, with a four-match series between the two sides the obvious showdown on the horizon. Dave Rennie's All Blacks look cohesive and dangerous after a 40-21 dismantling of Ireland, while France — despite losing Dupont for the All Blacks opener — look the most credible northern hemisphere World Cup contenders after thumping Australia and Japan.
The bigger talking point away from results is the scheduling chaos that northern hemisphere coaches endured during the southern leg. Quesada's account of back-to-back intercontinental trips with barely a day's recovery between them is damning, and Galthie publicly questioned the logic of sending France to Japan. The November reverse fixtures — when the southern nations head north for three tests each before a finals weekend at Twickenham — will be worth watching closely, particularly to see whether England's discipline problems (eight yellows and a red in eight matches) and Ireland's flyhalf headache become decisive issues.