Every story on the wire.
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Currie Cup Round 2: Faf fires, Griquas roll, and the Stormers XXIII get hammered
Louw spotlights Zak Alexander's hat-trick for Griquas and a dominant Faf de Klerk display for the Cheetahs as the highlights of Currie Cup Round 2, while also defending the competition's continued relevance despite its structural decline — and taking apart a dismal Stormers XXIII performance in the process.
Rennie's All Blacks squad built with the Boks squarely in the crosshairs
Gregor Paul argues Rennie has picked with a clear purpose: dethrone the Springboks now and build a squad capable of sustaining that challenge long-term.
Rennie explains Kirifi snub and backs Blackadder, Ta'eiloa to offer 'point of difference' against Boks
Dave Rennie has explained Du'Plessis Kirifi's omission from the All Blacks squad for the Greatest Rivalry series, citing existing openside cover, while identifying uncapped Semisi Tupou Ta'eiloa and recalled Ethan Blackadder as offering a 'point of difference' the touring party previously lacked.
Is Rennie's squad built to dethrone the Boks?
The argument: Rennie's All Blacks squad is built not just to beat the Boks in this series, but to displace them at the top of world rugby — the piece examines whether that selection logic stacks up.
Howarth: All Blacks' defensive leaks 'easily fixed' — but the Boks will expose them if not
Howarth backs the All Blacks' attacking evolution under Rennie but warns their defensive leaks need urgent fixing before the South Africa series — going toe-to-toe with the Bok forwards, he argues, is a losing strategy.
Sopoaga backs Love to handle the Springbok test at 10
Sopoaga endorses Ruben Love as the All Blacks' settled 10 ahead of the Springbok series, arguing he's thriving under Rennie and will only grow the more he plays — a useful read on the threat New Zealand could pose at fly-half.
Seven Boks make Nations Championship XV as All Blacks shut out entirely
Ben Youngs and Anthony Watson's Nations Championship XV features seven Springboks — Willemse, Kolbe, Kriel, Marx, Nortje, Du Toit and Wiese — with no All Blacks selected at all.
Henry's ghost is back: ex-All Black says Rennie has restored what Robertson lost
Howarth argues Rennie has restored the Graham Henry 'freedom to try' philosophy that went missing under Robertson — and that shift alone has transformed the All Blacks from a team playing scared to one worth fearing ahead of the Springbok series.
Du Preez delivers a cold verdict on Mike Phillips: 'Zero per cent record'
Du Preez and Burger revisit the 2009 Lions series on podcast — du Preez with a cold statistical put-down of Phillips, Burger with a classic Bakkies Botha anecdote that's worth reading in full.
Seven Boks make ex-England duo's Nations Championship XV — All Blacks shut out
Youngs and Watson's Nations Championship Team of the Tournament is loaded with Springboks — seven in total — with Willemse, Kolbe, Kriel, Marx, Du Toit, Nortje, and Wiese all making the cut, and no All Black in sight.
Pumas stay perfect at top of WSL 2 as Griquas and Eagirls also post big wins
The Pumas remain perfect on 20 points in the Pick n Pay WSL 2 after a 50-0 rout of the Limpopo Blue Bulls, while Griquas (41-26 over the Valke) and the SWD Eagirls (50-19 over the Griffons) also claimed bonus-point wins in Round 4.
Sopoaga: Rennie's greatest coaching weapon isn't tactics — it's connection
Sopoaga identifies Rennie's ability to build genuine human connection — not tactical innovation — as the All Blacks' most important development ahead of the Springbok showdowns, with the squad's Polynesian and Māori makeup making that quality particularly potent.
Stormers rule out De Allende move, turn attention to Jurenzo Julius
The Stormers have ruled out signing Damian de Allende on budget grounds and are targeting Sharks centre Jurenzo Julius instead, while Sanele Nohamba has joined Lyon on a two-year deal.
France the only side with the depth to dethrone the Boks, says Williams
Williams rates France as the only nation with the depth and forward power to seriously challenge the Boks in 2027, while issuing a damning assessment of Ireland's decline and Argentina's post-match conduct.
Mallett's warning: All Blacks are finding form at the right time
Mallett breaks down the All Blacks' Nations Championship campaign — patchy early but sharp against Ireland — and warns that their offload-heavy, momentum-based game will test the Boks' defensive system if Rennie's side maintains those standards into the Rugby's Greatest Rivalry series.
The Bok cuts that sting most ahead of the Argentina series
Papier, Roos, and Mchunu are identified as the unluckiest omissions from the latest Bok squad — Louw makes the case for each while acknowledging the logic behind Erasmus's calls.
Rugby world reacts to Nonu's Sharks signing — and wants him on the park against the All Blacks
Nonu's Sharks signing has been met with widespread approval, centred on the mentorship value for Jurenzo Julius and the delicious possibility of him facing the All Blacks at Kings Park in August.
Why the Boks, All Blacks and France have moved beyond positions — and England haven't
A sharp analytical piece arguing the world's top three sides have ditched positional orthodoxy entirely — selecting skill-set blends and assigning numbers afterwards — while England remain trapped in a specialist-filing-system mindset despite having the raw material to do otherwise.
Nations Championship Southern Series awards: Boks take top honours, but the chaos belongs to everyone else
South Africa sweep the major series awards — Erasmus, du Toit, and debutant de Villiers lead the way — but the wider piece is an entertaining tour through the Southern Series' defining moments: Argentina's extraordinary five-day stretch across two sports, Italy's governance implosion, a tracksuit red card, Henry Pollock shushing Buenos Aires, and Fiji's ingenious financial play.
Ma'a Nonu signs for the Sharks in mentorship role
Ma'a Nonu has signed a short-term deal with the Sharks, with the 44-year-old All Blacks great joining primarily as a mentor to young centres Jurenzo Julius and Ethan Hooker rather than as a frontline player.