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2,964 items · Springboks
Marx tops the world: Planet Rugby ranks the game's best hookers
Marx is ranked the world's best hooker by Planet Rugby — built on his 2025 Rugby Championship try-scoring, World Rugby Player of the Year honours, and a post-injury Nations Championship that reminded everyone what sits behind those numbers.
Louw and Grobbelaar released to Bulls for All Blacks clash at Loftus
Elrigh Louw and Johan Grobbelaar have been released from the Springbok camp to appear off the bench for the Bulls against the All Blacks at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday, with Johan Ackermann tempering expectations given his squad is three weeks into pre-season.
Rennie's second-string selection at Loftus is really about the Boks
Rennie's second-string Bulls selection is decoded as a final Springbok Test audition, with Barrett's move to fullback and Umaga's frustrated admission about the All Blacks' style among the sharpest talking points.
Louw and Grobbelaar released to Bulls for All Blacks clash at Loftus
Elrigh Louw and Johan Grobbelaar have been released to the Bulls for Saturday's match against the All Blacks at Loftus, with both named on the bench after a single training session back from Argentina. Coach Johan Ackermann acknowledges the side is well short of peak condition.
Mexted: SA's on-field/off-field switch is something the All Blacks genuinely admire
Mexted argues South African rugby's defining trait runs deeper than the Springboks — it's a culture-wide mentality of focused aggression on the field and discipline off it, and he frames the upcoming four-Test series as the starkest possible test of whether Robertson's attack-minded All Blacks can match it.
Bulls face All Blacks at Loftus with revamped side ahead of Springbok series
The Vodacom Bulls host New Zealand at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday in the final warm-up before the Rugby's Greatest Rivalry series begins in Johannesburg next weekend. While the Bulls field a more experienced side than the Hollywoodbets Sharks managed in Durban, only seven starters from the URC final against Leinster remain available. The match offers JF van Heerden a chance to stake his claim as Ruan Nortje's long-term replacement at lock.
Rassie's selection philosophy meets the Greatest Rivalry: what the Ellis Park 23 should look like
De Koning makes the case that Erasmus must shelve rotation thinking for the Ellis Park All Blacks Test and pick for winning now, with the 10 jersey and Kolisi's fitness the two variables that define the matchday 23.
Fleck and JDV: Stopping the second receiver is the blueprint — but the Boks' maul and scrum will be the difference
Fleck and JDV break down the blueprint for beating New Zealand — denying the second receiver, winning the collisions, and exploiting Springbok set-piece dominance — while Fleck profiles Rennie as a coach who makes physicality the non-negotiable foundation of everything.
What McCaw's hardest lessons could mean for the All Blacks against the Boks
McCaw reflects on the 2007 World Cup exit and 2009 Bok whitewash as the defining pressure tests that shaped his leadership — and the piece uses those lessons to assess what Dave Rennie's All Blacks will need to handle across four Tests against South Africa.
All Blacks wary of Le Roux, Bosch kicking threat and Bulls physicality
Anton Lienert-Brown has singled out Willie le Roux and Curwin Bosch, along with the Bulls' physicality up front, as the primary threats New Zealand must manage on Saturday.
Loftus on Saturday is a sideshow — the real series starts at Ellis Park
Keohane argues the Bulls-All Blacks match at Loftus is a glorified warmup act — with 14 absent Springboks gutting the Bulls' lineup and the All Blacks rotating freely across all three franchise matches, Saturday carries none of the weight its branding suggests. The series that matters starts at Ellis Park.
All Blacks ramp up mind games ahead of Springboks test series
The All Blacks have intensified their pre-series rhetoric, claiming South African sides are deliberately slowing play ahead of Rugby's Greatest Rivalry. Assistant coach Tana Umaga repeated the assertion following head coach Dave Rennie's earlier comments, with former Springboks hooker Hanyani Shimange warning the tour could turn sour if criticism of match officials continues.
All Blacks ring changes at Loftus as Rennie hands Taylor captaincy in final Springbok warm-up
Dave Rennie has made 19 changes to the All Blacks side that hammered the Sharks 54-0, handing Codie Taylor his first captaincy in his 110th Test as New Zealand prepare for their final tour match against the Bulls at Loftus Versfeld. Beauden Barrett returns but has been shifted to full-back, with Chiefs fly-half Josh Jacomb earning a start at number 10. The wholesale rotation offers fringe players a last chance to stake claims ahead of the opening Test against the Springboks.
Mexted: Rennie's All Blacks are now the world's best ball-movers — but don't expect the Boks to bite
Mexted argues Rennie has already sharpened the All Blacks into the world's premier ball-moving side — and ahead of the four-Test series, he expects the Boks to resist any temptation to match them at that game.
Mo'unga to miss first Springbok test as Rennie eases All Black back into structures
Richie Mo'unga will not feature in the All Blacks' first test against the Springboks, with Dave Rennie planning to ease the returning flyhalf into action against the Lions while making clear Ruben Love currently holds the 10 jersey.
Conrad Smith on the Boks: brutal on the field, beers after the whistle
Conrad Smith reflects on facing the Springboks during his All Blacks career — fierce on the field, genuine mates after the whistle, with a Bakkies Botha anecdote that captures the era perfectly.
Fourie tops the charts as Planet Rugby ranks the Greatest Rivalry tour's best performers
Planet Rugby ranks Deon Fourie as the tour's best performer so far, ahead of Jordie Barrett — the piece breaks down who's made their case for the Test series through the two warm-up wins.
Tickets range up to R1,350 for Bulls vs All Blacks at Loftus
Tickets for the Vodacom Bulls vs All Blacks match at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday night top out at R1,350, with cheaper options still available.
Murray Mexted: Boks have 150 Test-ready players — All Blacks have 40
Murray Mexted puts a number on the Boks' depth advantage — 150 Test-ready players to New Zealand's 40 — and credits Erasmus's eight-year rotation philosophy for building a squad pool with no close rival heading into the 2027 World Cup cycle.
Rennie's tour selections: Masterstroke or a costly gamble ahead of Ellis Park?
Rennie's decision to field weakened sides against the Stormers and Bulls is either a deliberate masterstroke — protecting Test ploys while using stronger opposition to evaluate fringe players — or a dangerous gamble that leaves Savea, Jordan and Roigard undercooked for Ellis Park. The piece breaks down the selection logic, the Barrett-at-15 and Mo'unga questions, and what Rennie still needs answered at Loftus.