Planet Rugby's Monday hot-and-not column gives the Springboks credit for a gutsy series-levelling win in Cape Town — competitive rather than clinical, with fewer tries than the All Blacks again, but the physicality and defensive edge that went missing in Johannesburg firmly restored. Etzebeth, De Allende, Du Toit, Kriel and Marx led the tackle count, and Kolisi's try celebration is read as a timely signal that he's not done at Test level. Kolbe's kicking evolution gets its own spotlight: seven from seven, 18 points, now a genuine first-choice option rather than an emergency one — even if his punch at Leroy Carter gets a wry aside. The one cold bucket: Rassie's post-match F-bomb exchange with Rennie. The column doesn't question his coaching, but argues he needs a quiet word from Mark Alexander about managing his media appearances with the rugby world watching. Elsewhere, Argentina's home-ground discomfort under Contepomi draws concern, and the Lions' close showing against the All Blacks midweek — paired with a Currie Cup semi-final qualification — is flagged as evidence of a genuine rebuild.
Springbok snarl is back — but Rassie's F-bomb moment draws a rebuke
Planet Rugby credits the Boks for a deserved Cape Town win driven by veteran physicality and a revived snarl — but Rassie's F-bomb press conference moment earns a rebuke, with the column calling for SA Rugby to intervene on decorum.
Erasmus: winning stays non-negotiable, whatever the World Cup build-up demands
Erasmus has made his 2025 season intent explicit: rotation and World Cup-building happen inside a framework where winning remains the non-negotiable baseline. The piece breaks down what that means for squad management, the veterans' standing, and why the All Blacks series carries extra weight.
Erasmus draws the line: World Cup planning won't come at the cost of winning
Erasmus is unambiguous: squad-building and World Cup prep don't override the drive to win. The piece breaks down how he's balancing depth rotation with a clear selection hierarchy, and what this season's fixture list — England, then four All Blacks Tests — demands of a squad that's broadened over two years and is now being refined.
The Barbarians hit-out is a key cog in Rassie's World Cup machine
Nel makes the case that the Barbarians fixture is less about the result and more about Erasmus stress-testing depth, blooding uncapped talent, and keeping the World Cup-winning core fresh — all with 2027 firmly in mind.
All Blacks' loosehead crisis hands Springboks a ready-made weapon in Greatest Rivalry Series
Jeff Wilson has publicly identified loosehead prop as the All Blacks' most dangerous weakness ahead of four consecutive Tests against the Springboks — with Williams likely out, Tu'ungafasi's future uncertain, and the remaining options short on caps and experience. Set against the depth Erasmus has built across the prop positions, this piece maps out why scrum time could be where the Greatest Rivalry Series is decided.
Stephen Donald: Robertson copied the Boks — Rennie must go back to All Blacks DNA
Stephen Donald backs Hansen's anti-copycat argument, saying Robertson erred by chasing the Springbok blueprint rather than New Zealand's tempo-based strengths — and expects Rennie to correct that course ahead of a blockbuster four-Test series in South Africa.