With World Rugby's ratings points maths stacked against them, the Boks head into Saturday's Buenos Aires Test in a no-win position in the rankings — a victory yields nothing at the top, but a loss could hand the All Blacks the number one spot. Devin Hermanus unpacks why the standings arithmetic makes this a high-stakes trip to Argentina despite the one-sided optics.
AnalysisSpringboksSA Rugby Mag
Rankings trap: Boks can't gain at the top, but can fall from it
The rankings maths in Buenos Aires is brutally one-sided — the Boks can't climb, but a slip-up against Los Pumas opens the door for the All Blacks to leapfrog them at the top.
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