Planet Rugby rounds up how New Zealand's rugby press made sense of the 43-28 defeat in Baltimore and the 3-1 series loss. The consensus is damning: the Gregor Paul line that the All Blacks have 'slipped a length behind the Boks' captures the dominant tone. The Springboks didn't just win the power battle — they won the pace battle too, dismantling the narrative that the Boks could be run off their feet. Paul notes New Zealand looked tired and physically outgunned in the final stretch, with no single facet where they held an edge.
Stuff's Richard Knowler takes a harsher line on the All Blacks' internal culture — urging Rennie to deliver hard truths rather than allow the side to deflect onto referee Karl Dickson (whose decisions were still debated). Knowler's core point: the discipline issues that plagued New Zealand throughout the series, the set-piece vulnerability, and the exposure under contestable kicks were self-inflicted wounds that no officiating controversy can paper over. The broader picture from the NZ press is of a team that knows it's behind — and isn't yet sure how to close the gap.