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AnalysisSpringboks

Full circle at Ellis Park: Kolisi on the moment that started it all

Kolisi revisits the 2018 Ellis Park comeback — down 24-3, no answers under the posts, and a crash course in shared leadership — as the Boks prepare to return to the same ground against the same opposition for the Nations Championship opener.

Rugby365
AnalysisSpringboks

Erasmus: 'We don't see the Nations Championship as a competition'

Erasmus says the Boks won't adjust their approach to chase Nations Championship log points — each Test is treated as a standalone match, with squad rotation across the window as the priority over competition standings.

Planet Rugby
AnalysisSpringboks

Joubert: Janse van Rensburg would've relished the Ellis Park stage

Joubert believes Janse van Rensburg had every reason to want to prove himself against the Boks at Ellis Park — and the full piece digs into what his absence means.

SA Rugby Mag
AnalysisSpringboks

Ex-Bok: Janse van Rensburg would have had a point to prove against the Boks

Marius Joubert weighs in on Benhard Janse van Rensburg missing the chance to face the Boks in an England shirt — and why that fixture would have meant more than most.

SA Rugby Mag
PodcastSpringboks

Cardinelli: Rassie Is Building for 2027 — and Beyond — With an Athletic, Utility-First Squad

Jon Cardinelli argues Rassie is fast-tracking an athletic, utility-heavy generation of Springboks, with the bomb squad being rebuilt around hybrid forwards and the brutal four-test All Blacks series demanding squad depth above all else.

The Lekker Rugby Pod
AnalysisSpringboks

Burger sees chaos-creator in Norton — with one fix needed

Burger backs Norton as a natural fit for Brown's chaos-style attack, identifies a clean offloading game as the one tweak needed — and the injury-ravaged lock stocks mean that fix could fast-track a full Test debut.

Planet Rugby
AnalysisSpringboks

Graham Henry's praise puts Rassie's depth chart in sharp perspective

Graham Henry's public defence of Rassie's rotation policy gives this depth-chart breakdown an unusual angle — with position-by-position analysis showing just how far Springbok depth now extends beyond the current 46-man squad.

Rugby365
AnalysisSpringboks

Rassie isn't buying into the Nations Championship bonus-point game

Erasmus has made clear the Boks aren't chasing bonus points in the Nations Championship — winning Tests and building toward the World Cup is the only metric that counts. This piece examines whether that mindset will hold across the top nations and what it means for the new competition's real-world impact.

SuperSport Rugby
AnalysisSpringboks

Norton's Bok call-up wasn't luck — the numbers and the attitude back it up

Norton's Barbarians stats — 80 minutes, 100% tackle success, a try — underpin why Erasmus pulled him from the Junior World Championship. The piece builds a compelling case that this is a long-term bet on a player already embedded in Bok thinking, not a panic call.

SuperSport Rugby
AnalysisSpringboks

Why Erasmus chose Norton over Van der Mescht — and what it reveals about Bok lock priorities

Erasmus explains the Norton-over-Van der Mescht call as a tactical fit decision rather than a quality judgment — the piece breaks down the Bok lock crisis and how the coaching staff are navigating it.

Planet Rugby · SuperSport Rugby
ReportSpringboks

England adopt no-excuses stance ahead of Ellis Park Test opener

England travel for their summer tour on Wednesday with Jamie George as captain and a no-excuses stance on their demanding itinerary, as Rassie Erasmus acknowledges the difficulty of reading a Borthwick-coached England ahead of the July 4 Nations Championship opener at Ellis Park.

Rugby365
ReportSpringboks

Norton over Van der Mescht: Erasmus explains lock call as fit, not form

Rassie Erasmus has defended Riley Norton's promotion to the Springbok squad ahead of Northampton's JJ van der Mescht, insisting the decision hinged on tactical fit rather than a judgement of quality. The 20-year-old Junior Springbok captain impressed in the 80-31 victory over the Barbarians in Gqeberha, completing 80 minutes and scoring a try. Erasmus stressed the two locks offer contrasting skill sets, with Norton's lineout leadership and mobility suiting current requirements.

Rugby365 · SuperSport Rugby
AnalysisSpringboks

Riley Norton: The numbers behind a call-up that surprised everyone but Rassie

A stat-backed case for why Norton's Bok call-up reflects genuine coaching conviction rather than desperation — and why the Erasmus/van der Mescht comparison misses the point entirely.

SuperSport Rugby
AnalysisSpringboks

Watson: Kolbe is England's biggest headache — but Bok versatility is the real danger

Watson names Kolbe as England's biggest individual concern but argues the Boks' real edge is their ability to change tactical identity based on which fly-half starts — a flexibility that makes them uniquely hard to prepare for.

Planet Rugby
AnalysisSpringboks

Contepomi's warning: Boks are dangerous precisely because attack and forward dominance now combine

Contepomi argues the Boks' real danger isn't attack or forward dominance in isolation — it's that Tony Brown's influence has made them fluent in both, with the football intelligence to switch between them at will. A sharp external read ahead of the England test.

Rugby365
AnalysisSpringboks

'A young Willie le Roux' — Bok legends see a golden generation emerging

De Villiers, Burger, and Shimange identify Luan Gilomee, Zekhethelo Siyaya, and Haashim Pead as the standout talents from SA A's win over Zimbabwe, with Kolisi adding his own praise for the U20s group now training with the senior squad.

Planet Rugby
AnalysisSpringboks

Erasmus warns: don't read England's Six Nations form into what's coming at Ellis Park

Erasmus flags England's youth-plus-experience mix as a genuine danger at Ellis Park, draws parallels between his own squad rotation and Borthwick's, and reserves particular respect for Pollock's on-field output despite the surrounding hype.

Planet Rugby · Rugby365
AnalysisSpringboks

Fit over form: Why Norton got the call ahead of Van der Mescht

Erasmus explains the Norton-over-Van der Mescht call: it's a player-type decision, not a form judgment. Norton's lineout leadership, athleticism and system familiarity won out over Van der Mescht's physicality — which the Boks can cover elsewhere. A useful read for understanding how Erasmus is managing a depleted lock group.

Rugby365 · SuperSport Rugby
AnalysisSpringboks

England's tactical shape-shifting has Erasmus on edge ahead of Ellis Park opener

Gavin Rich argues that England's Six Nations struggles mask a genuine tactical evolution under Borthwick — one that has Erasmus wary ahead of the Ellis Park opener. The piece covers England's squad depth without Itoje, the threat of Henry Pollock, and why neither coach is playing for Nations Championship log points.

SuperSport Rugby
VideoSpringboks

Die Losgemaal 25 Junie.

Ons gesels oor die Bulle se rampspoedige finaal en die Bokke wat begin speel het!

SA Rugby Magazine