The Springboks have to win their next three Tests against the All Blacks if they want to come out on top in Rugby's Greatest Rivalry.
Springbok utility back Jesse Kriel in action against the All Blacks during the opening Test of Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series at Ellis Park over the past weekend. Picture: Floris van Schouwenburg/Gallo Images
If the Springboks want to come out on top in Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry (RGR) series, they will have to do it playing “knockout rugby”, after the All Blacks stunned them in the first Test at Ellis Park over the weekend.
Heading to Cape Town for the second Test this coming weekend the Boks know that another loss will mean that they won’t be able to win the four-Test series, but only draw it if they then triumph in the final two Tests.
However, with the final Test being played on neutral ground in the USA, the Boks would likely be massively disappointed to go down 2-1 on home soil, which will probably ratchet up the pressure in the team, as it makes the Cape Town match a must-win encounter.
After the game on Saturday experienced utility back Jesse Kriel said that most of the squad had been in this position before, needing to win three straight matches, as they did in 2019 and 2023 to win back-to-back World Cup titles.
“We’ve been in situations like this before. We know we weren’t as accurate as we wanted to be [in the first Test]. We also know that New Zealand played unbelievably well, they were well prepared and came here with a great plan,” explained Kriel.
“Coming into this we knew that it would kind of feel like knockout rugby, so yeah, you could look at it like that. We know that we’ve got three more chances to perform the way we want to and play like the team we know we can be.”
Disappointing loss
The disappointing thing about the Boks’ defeat in the RGR series opener is that they played relatively well for large portions of the game, but were just unable to finish and then fell apart during the final quarter.
This while the All Blacks were extremely clinical, coming away with points from almost every visit to the hosts 22m area, which allowed them to walk away with a comfortable-looking 33-16 win.
The Boks will thus need to massively improve their finishing and discipline as well, after two late yellow cards compounded things by making them play the last 10 minutes of the match with 13 men.
“In Test match rugby, if you don’t convert or take your opportunities and other teams do, the scoreboard is normally not in your favour,” admitted Kriel.
“I just don’t think we were as accurate as we wanted to be on the night, and New Zealand put us under a lot of pressure. The All Blacks were clinical when they got their chances. We’ll have to be better and we’re looking forward to the challenge.”
Following this weekend’s second Test the Boks return to Johannesburg for the third Test at the FNB Stadium in Soweto, before heading to the US for the fourth and final Test in Baltimore.
