It may have been a dead rubber, but the 22-12 Wallaby win over the British and Irish Lions in the final match of the series provided the perfect script for anyone charged with the task of marketing the Castle Lager Rugby Championship.
The Springboks start their defence of the title with two games against the Wallabies, the first in Johannesburg on 16 August and then Cape Town a week later, and the ante has been lifted by all the talk of an Australian rugby revival.
While the hosts did lose the series, which was widely anticipated, they improved incrementally in each game and the powerful performance delivered in the finale in Sydney was a forceful message not only to their next opponents but also to the All Blacks and Argentina. The Wallabies haven’t won in Johannesburg since 1963 so it will be a big ask for them, and they are also unlikely to have in tow the real orchestrator of their win in Sydney, scrumhalf Nic White. It was White’s tactical astuteness and kicking from the base of the scrum that kept the Lions on the back foot in a game played in inclement conditions.
However, with the Wallaby squad for the Championship to be announced shortly, it is at the very least highly doubtful that they will have Tupou’s scrumming force available at Emirates Airlines Park. Coach Andy Farrell appeared to make some grave errors with his selections, particularly for this last game, although admittedly he wasn’t helped by the lightning break that allowed the Wallabies to get a breather and negated the impact of bench players like Ellis Genge.
South Africa Latest News, South Africa Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Junior Boks’ ‘hunger and aggression’ an inspiration for the Boks, says KolisiSpringbok captain Siya Kolisi says the Junior Boks have been setting a standard for the senior team to aspire to, at the World Rugby U20 Champs.
Read more »
Fullback Fassi says draws inspiration from Boks' creative environment - SABC News - Breaking news, special reports, world, business, sport coverage of all South African current events. Africa's news leader.Boks fullback Aphelele Fassi says he draws confidence from a creative environment in the nation team
Read more »
Junior Boks go for a 6–2 bench for U20 Championship semi-finalThe Junior Boks have made a few rotational changes to the team that thrashed Scotland, ahead of their semi-final aginast Argentina.
Read more »
Heavily penalised Junior Boks down Argentina to make World U20 Champs finalA heavily penalised Junior Springbok team showed class to power their way to a comfortable 48-24 win over Argentina U20s in their semifinal.
Read more »
Junior Boks storm into U20 Championship finalAnother kicking masterclass from flyhalf Vusi Moyo made sure the Junior Springboks advance to the World Rugby U20 Championship final.
Read more »
‘Every player gave his all’: Junior Boks coach hails defence after semi-final winThe Junior Springboks beat Argentina in the semi-final of the World Rugby U20 Championship to progress to the final against New Zealand.
Read more »