Planet Rugby hands out its end-of-series awards for the Nations Championship Southern Series, and South Africa sweep the major categories. The Boks take Team, Coach, Player, and Breakthrough of the Series — Erasmus made 10 changes after round one and still won, du Toit performed three different roles across three Tests without dropping below standard, and Paul de Villiers went from last-minute debutant to series regular in a squad that didn't need to give him those minutes. The awkward question Erasmus now faces — how to fit de Villiers and Kolisi into the same back-row — is treated as the most telling compliment of the month.
Beyond the Boks, the piece is essentially a catalogue of the series' most memorable chaos. Argentina managed to lose a rugby Test to England by seven while simultaneously winning football's semi-final over them, losing the football World Cup final the next day, having an object thrown at the referee, a coach walk out of his press conference over England's music, and a fly-half charge at Angus Gardner on the final whistle. Italy had three suspensions across the tournament, a prop collect a red card while wearing his tracksuit off the bench, and conceded 131 points in three matches. Henry Pollock shushed Buenos Aires from a team bus and then went out and scored a hat-trick the following week. Fiji lost all three home fixtures in Cardiff, Liverpool, and Edinburgh — 16,000 kilometres from home — and is projected to bank a $7 million surplus toward a new stadium in Suva. It's a rich read for anyone who followed the fortnight and wants the full scorecard.