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Mo'unga returns at flyhalf for Baltimore decider as Rennie backs Love's development
Richie Mo'unga returns to start at flyhalf for the All Blacks in the Baltimore decider against the Springboks — his first Test since the 2023 World Cup Final — with Beauden Barrett named on the bench for the first time in the series.
Rennie backs Taylor captaincy call ahead of Baltimore series finale
Dave Rennie says restoring Codie Taylor to the All Blacks captaincy for the series finale against the Springboks in Baltimore was an easy call.
Rennie backs Love despite dropping him for Springbok decider
Dave Rennie insists Ruben Love's axing from the All Blacks squad for the series decider against the Springboks is not form-related.
Mo'unga's return puts Love's All Blacks future on the line
Mo'unga's return from a near three-year absence is the lens through which Planet Rugby dissects Rennie's selection — with Love's long-term hold on the 10 jersey now in genuine doubt, and bigger questions hanging over Ioane, Beauden Barrett, and Sititi's respective Test futures.
Roigard flags Bok error-exploitation as All Blacks' key Baltimore problem
Roigard identifies Springbok error-exploitation as the All Blacks' core problem heading into Baltimore — South Africa's kicking and set-piece game feeds directly off opposition mistakes, and the All Blacks made too many in Soweto. He's confident in the squad's growth but knows cleaner execution is non-negotiable in the series decider.
Hansen: Boks have laid bare exactly what the All Blacks must fix before the World Cup
Hansen argues South Africa's set-piece dominance was the series-defining factor, and that the All Blacks won't challenge the Boks at the World Cup until they solve their scrum and lineout problems — a clear-eyed read of exactly where Rassie's system is hurting opponents most.
Marshall's blueprint: Ask different questions of the Boks in the decider
Marshall argues the All Blacks should use their injury-forced changes as a tactical reset — introducing Ioane, Mo'unga and Blackadder to show the Boks something new, while shifting Vaa'i to the flank to enable a double-loosie bench and target the final quarter with tempo over physicality.
Read pinpoints the turning points that cost the All Blacks in Soweto
Read argues the Soweto Test wasn't lost to Springbok dominance but to a handful of compounding All Blacks errors — most critically a Reinach turnover that directly produced the penalty try. He and Williams both frame the Boks as superior at converting and chaining moments, a quality edge that will define the Baltimore decider.
Sititi says All Blacks must regroup quickly ahead of Baltimore finale
Wallace Sititi says the All Blacks must move on quickly from two successive defeats to the Springboks as they prepare for the series finale in Baltimore on Saturday.
Sititi urges All Blacks to move on ahead of Baltimore decider
Wallace Sititi says the All Blacks must put back-to-back losses to the Springboks behind them ahead of the series finale in Baltimore on Saturday.
All Blacks getting more from Greatest Rivalry tour than the Boks — but it's a telling admission
Brad Weber argues the Greatest Rivalry tour has been more valuable for the All Blacks than the Boks, framing it as a development exercise — but in doing so he effectively concedes the Springbok dynasty represents a standard that will take New Zealand years to match.
McKenzie: All Blacks have plenty to play for in Baltimore finale
Damian McKenzie says the All Blacks have plenty to play for in the Baltimore finale despite trailing the Greatest Rivalry Series 2-1, pointing to New Zealand's try-scoring output and the need to convert momentum swings as the key to levelling the series.
World Rugby's 2027 draw has put the final in the quarter-finals — and it knew exactly what it was doing
A sharp structural critique of the 2027 RWC draw — arguing World Rugby knowingly built a format that sends the Boks and All Blacks into a quarter-final collision, repeating the same mistake that produced the 2023 semi-final that should have been a final.
Why South Africa and New Zealand are built to last — and England are structurally stuck
Using the Springboks' 2-1 series lead over the All Blacks as a jumping-off point, this piece argues that South Africa, New Zealand and France sustain excellence because their professional structures grew out of genuine community identity — the Boks' grassroots scouting, New Zealand's fifty-year Pacific pipeline, French clubs as civic institutions. England's problem isn't culture (Cornwall put 40,000 into Twickenham for a County Championship final); it's that the professional game was built where the feeling wasn't, leaving the two permanently disconnected.
Wallabies lose Carter Gordon to leg fracture ahead of Springboks Test
Australia will be without first-choice flyhalf Carter Gordon for their Perth Test against the Springboks on 26 September after the playmaker suffered a leg fracture in the weekend's 28-28 draw with Argentina. The injury is expected to sideline Gordon for two months, ruling him out of the Bledisloe Cup series as well.
All Blacks coach admits Bok set-piece is a 'gravy train of penalties' ahead of Baltimore decider
Barnes openly acknowledged the Bok set-piece has been the series' decisive weapon, while insisting the All Blacks' game plan doesn't need an overhaul — just fewer errors and a better handle on referee perception at scrum time. Baltimore will show whether that's clarity or denial.
Carter Gordon breaks leg in Mendoza, set to miss Springboks Test and Bledisloe Cup
Carter Gordon has broken his leg in Australia's draw with Argentina in Mendoza, ruling him out of the Wallabies' Test against South Africa and the Bledisloe Cup series.
Savea ruled out of Baltimore decider as All Blacks sweat on Tupaea
Ardie Savea has been ruled out of the Baltimore decider with a shoulder injury sustained in the All Blacks' 24-29 loss to the Springboks at FNB Stadium, while Quinn Tupaea is also under an injury cloud ahead of the final Test.
All Blacks ratings: Savea's injury, shambolic defence hand Boks the series
Planet Rugby's All Blacks ratings from the Johannesburg Test pin the defeat on Savea's shoulder injury and defensive lapses from the back three — Carter rated a blunt 4 for two failed cover attempts — while the tighthead props again struggled badly against Nche and Louw.
Bower wants to scrum — and says the All Blacks are coming for the Boks up front
Bower dismisses the idea that the All Blacks are scrummaging to avoid contact, arguing they've absorbed lessons from Tests one and two and are actively targeting the set-piece as a contest — with Saturday's first scrum likely to set the tone for the series decider.