International
All Blacks complete clean sweep with eight-try Bulls demolition
Published
2 months agoon
The All Blacks completed a clean sweep of the franchise fixtures on the Greatest Rivalry Tour, running in eight tries to beat the Bulls 50-19 at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria. Leading 24-0 at half-time after a dominant opening 40 minutes, the tourists met stiffer resistance after the break but still had more than enough firepower to pull away for a commanding victory in their final hit-out before the first Test against the Springboks.
Key moments
11 mins – Bulls denied by TMO. Hooker Juann Else driven close from a rolling maul but held up short. On-field call of no try upheld after review. Bulls scrum 5m out.
12 mins – Massive All Blacks scrum. Xavier Numia and the pack blow the Bulls off the ball on their own 5m line. Penalty won, Barrett kicks to touch.
14 mins – TRY ALL BLACKS: Josh Moorby steps inside one defender and stretches out to score in the left corner after slick hands through Segner, Lienert-Brown, Jacomb and Barrett. Leroy Carter’s direct running created the initial momentum. Barrett’s conversion misses. (Bulls 0–5 All Blacks)
16 mins – Bulls try disallowed. Hanro Liebenberg pounces on a loose ball after Fabian Holland fumbles near his own line, but TMO rules a knock-on by Willie le Roux in the build-up.
19 mins – TRY ALL BLACKS: Josh Moorby scores his second after Peter Lakai’s inside pass, capping a flowing move sparked by Leroy Carter grabbing a Barrett chip kick. Barrett converts from the touchline. (Bulls 0–12 All Blacks)
25 mins – Josh Jacomb lands a 50/22 kick to give the All Blacks attacking field position. Left-footed, from a right-footed kicker.
30 mins – YELLOW CARD BULLS: Tighthead prop Francois Klopper sin-binned for persistent team offside infringements while the All Blacks were hammering the line.
32 mins – TRY ALL BLACKS: Codie Taylor spots a hole from a tap penalty 5m out, feinting initially to draw the defence offside before burrowing through. Jacomb’s conversion misses. (Bulls 0–17 All Blacks)
40+1 mins – TRY ALL BLACKS: Codie Taylor scores his second after a flowing counter-attack. Xavier Numia and Fabian Holland provide the final passes, Holland delivering a slick no-look flick to put Taylor through a hole near the posts. Jacomb converts. (Bulls 0–24 All Blacks)
Half-time: Bulls 0–24 All Blacks. A dominant first half from the tourists. The scrum was enormous, Segner outstanding at the breakdown with multiple turnovers, and the backs clinical when given space. Moorby and Taylor scored two apiece. The Bulls showed early intent with their maul and Jeandre Rudolph was immense, but could not breach the All Blacks’ defence.
42 mins – TRY BULLS: Lock Ruan Vermaak peels around the back of a lineout maul and powers low to score. Initially queried by the TMO but referee Nika Amashukeli overrules, awarding the try. Curwin Bosch converts. (Bulls 7–24 All Blacks)
44 mins – TRY ALL BLACKS: Leroy Carter tip-toes down the right touchline to score in the corner after Peter Lakai surged to the 5m line from a Bulls error off the restart. Jacomb’s conversion misses. (Bulls 7–29 All Blacks)
49 mins – TRY ALL BLACKS: Rieko Ioane strolls over out wide after Anton Lienert-Brown burst through a hole and fired a flick pass to Carter, who collected on the bounce and fed Ioane inside. Jacomb converts. (Bulls 7–36 All Blacks)
54 mins – TRY BULLS: Stravino Jacobs finishes a brilliant long-range try after Jeandre Rudolph zips off the back of a scrum down the short side and links with Curwin Bosch. Jacobs steps inside Barrett to score. Bosch’s conversion hits the upright. (Bulls 12–36 All Blacks)
67 mins – TRY ALL BLACKS: Leroy Carter dives over for his second after a sequence of pop passes from Barrett and Jacomb on the edge of the 22. Jacomb converts. (Bulls 12–43 All Blacks)
73 mins – TRY BULLS: Captain Marcell Coetzee burrows over from close range after sustained forward pressure. Bosch converts. (Bulls 19–43 All Blacks)
77 mins – TRY ALL BLACKS: Wallace Sititi powers through soft tackles from the base of a ruck to score under the posts. Kyle Preston and Timoci Tavatavanawai provided the momentum with powerful carries. Jacomb converts. (Bulls 19–50 All Blacks)
Full-time: Bulls 19–50 All Blacks
Thirty years on from clinching their first series success on South African soil, the All Blacks returned to Loftus Versfeld and delivered their most complete performance of the tour. Playing at 1,350 metres above sea level on a clear Pretoria evening, they bossed the gainline, dominated the breakdown and ran the Bulls ragged to complete a three-from-three sweep of the franchise fixtures before the business end of the Greatest Rivalry Tour begins.
The scoreline flattered neither side. The All Blacks were irresistible in the first half, running for a staggering 248 post-contact metres before the break and forcing the Bulls into 24 missed tackles across the opening 40 minutes. But as head coach Dave Rennie noted afterwards, the tourists left plenty of points on the park through inaccurate finishing and loose kicking in general play.
“We just lacked a bit of finish,” Rennie told Sky Sport. “It was a bit sloppy tonight, so we left a lot of points out there. I just felt we kicked too much ball out early which gave them too much set piece. We want to put up contestables so we can at least force them to play back. So we will tidy that up.”
For all those caveats, there was much to admire. The scrum, a source of concern against the Stormers ten days ago, was a weapon. Xavier Numia produced a statement performance at loosehead on his first tour appearance, and one enormous shove on the All Blacks’ own 5m line in the 12th minute — which blew the Bulls backwards and won a penalty — set the tone for the evening. Tyrel Lomax’s return at tighthead, in his first match since arriving in South Africa with an infected cut, was equally encouraging. Rennie credited scrum coach Jason Ryan for the improvement.
But it was openside flanker Anton Segner who was the standout performer, earning a deserved man-of-the-match award. The German-born loose forward topped the tackle count with 13, made 12 carries, and secured multiple breakdown turnovers to ensure a consistent supply of quality ball. His intervention to hold up Bulls lock Ruan Vermaak over the line in the second half was another pivotal moment. Segner has made a compelling case for the Test 23.
“Credit to the Bulls, I don’t think the scoreboard reflects how hard of a game it was, especially in the second half when they really came out firing and put us under pressure,” Segner said. “There’s some big boys there and they only came one way, which was straight down the middle.”
The All Blacks had to absorb early pressure before breaking the deadlock. The Bulls launched several driving mauls from inside the 22, with hooker Else held up centimetres short in the 11th minute after their pack had built a serious head of steam. But after that statement scrum, the All Blacks cleared their lines and quickly transitioned into attack. A flowing move through multiple hands ended with Josh Moorby stepping inside one defender and stretching out to score in the left corner in the 14th minute. Barrett’s conversion drifted wide.
The Bulls were then denied by the TMO when Liebenberg pounced on a loose ball and appeared to score after Holland fumbled near his own line — a moment the lock will want to forget — but a knock-on by le Roux in the initial build-up was spotted on review. The All Blacks made the hosts pay minutes later. Barrett launched a chip to the right that was brilliantly taken on the full by Leroy Carter, who linked with Rieko Ioane before the ball was worked wide for Peter Lakai to feed Moorby inside for his second. Barrett converted from the touchline.
Josh Jacomb, starting at first five-eighth for the first time, produced a moment of quality with a 50/22 kick — left-footed, from a natural right-footer — that gave the All Blacks attacking field position. They hammered away at the Bulls’ line under sustained pressure until prop Klopper was sin-binned for persistent team infringements. Captain Codie Taylor, marking his return from a calf injury and his first appearance of the tour, drove over from a tap penalty to make it 17-0.
Taylor scored again on the stroke of half-time in a try that encapsulated the All Blacks’ collective effort. Holland, who had been outstanding despite the earlier fumble, powered a counter-ruck to win turnover ball. When it was worked towards the line, it was Holland again — standing off a ruck — who delivered a slick no-look flick pass to put Taylor through a hole near the posts. Jacomb converted for a 24-0 lead.
The Bulls roared back within two minutes of the restart. Lock Vermaak peeled around the back of a lineout maul and charged low towards the line, stretching out to ground the ball. In a rare and welcome moment of common sense, referee Amashukeli overruled TMO Eric Gauzins, who argued there was no conclusive evidence of grounding, and awarded the try. Bosch converted and the crowd of 30,930 roared.
The All Blacks’ response was instant. From the restart, Segner forced an error with a powerful tackle, and from the resulting turnover the ball was shifted wide right for Carter to tip-toe his way down the touchline and score in the corner. Three minutes later, Lienert-Brown burst through a hole and fired a flick pass to Carter, who collected on the bounce and fed Ioane inside for the centre to stroll over. At 36-7, the contest was effectively over.
The Bulls produced the try of the match in the 54th minute. Number eight Jeandre Rudolph, who had been immense throughout, set sail down the blindside from a scrum, linked with Curwin Bosch, and the fly-half drew two defenders before releasing Stravino Jacobs down the touchline. Jacobs stepped inside Barrett’s tackle attempt and crashed over for a try that will live long in his memory. Bosch’s conversion struck the upright.
Carter completed his double in the 67th minute, finishing off a move that featured pop passes from Barrett and Jacomb on the edge of the 22. Coetzee burrowed over for the Bulls’ third with seven minutes remaining after sustained forward pressure, before Wallace Sititi had the final say, powering through under the posts after Timoci Tavatavanawai had softened the defence with a trademark steamrolling carry.
Taylor, captaining the All Blacks for the first time in his 110th match, was replaced at half-time as a precaution but was delighted with the display. “Another tough game for us. The Bulls turned up in patches and it was a physical game,” he said. “No disrespect to the Bulls, but the Springboks will lift the tempo and the physicality and that is what Test match footy is all about. It’s an exciting week ahead.”
Rennie confirmed that Richie Mo’unga, who arrived in Johannesburg on Friday, would not be considered for the first Test. “Richie arrived late last night. He is excited and jumping out of his skin,” Rennie said. “He will spend the next week getting his head around things and he will not be considered for the first Test. We will hopefully see him play in the game against the Lions.”
On the fitness of his walking wounded, Rennie said he expected Cam Roigard and Will Jordan to be available for the first Test, but conceded he was “sweating on” Damian McKenzie’s ankle. “We are confident that Cam Roigard and Will Jordan will come right. Damian McKenzie, maybe we’re sweating on a tad, but we still think he will come right.”
The All Blacks now head to Johannesburg for the first Test against the Springboks at Ellis Park next Saturday. Three wins from three against heavily depleted franchise sides have provided useful preparation, but as Taylor acknowledged, the Boks will represent an altogether different level of intensity. The phony war is over. The real test begins now.
Teams
Bulls: 15 Willie le Roux, 14 Thaakir Abrahams, 13 Stedman Gans, 12 Harold Vorster, 11 Stravino Jacobs, 10 Curwin Bosch, 9 Embrose Papier, 8 Jeandre Rudolph, 7 Hanro Liebenberg, 6 Marcell Coetzee (c), 5 JF van Heerden, 4 Ruan Vermaak, 3 Francois Klopper, 2 Juann Else, 1 Alu Tshakweni.
Replacements: 16 Johan Grobbelaar, 17 Sti Sithole, 18 Khuta Mchunu, 19 Reinhardt Ludwig, 20 Elrigh Louw, 21 Paul de Wet, 22 Katlego Letebele, 23 Hakeem Kunene.
All Blacks: 15 Beauden Barrett, 14 Leroy Carter, 13 Rieko Ioane, 12 Anton Lienert-Brown, 11 Josh Moorby, 10 Josh Jacomb, 9 Cortez Ratima, 8 Peter Lakai, 7 Anton Segner, 6 Simon Parker, 5 Patrick Tuipulotu, 4 Fabian Holland, 3 Tyrel Lomax, 2 Codie Taylor (c), 1 Xavier Numia.
Replacements: 16 Samisoni Taukei’aho, 17 George Bower, 18 Siale Lauaki, 19 Josh Lord, 20 Wallace Sititi, 21 Kyle Preston, 22 Timoci Tavatavanawai, 23 Emoni Narawa.
Match details
Bulls 19 (Tries: Vermaak, Jacobs, Coetzee; Conversions: Bosch 2/3)
All Blacks 50 (Tries: Moorby 2, Taylor 2, Carter 2, Ioane, Sititi; Conversions: Barrett 1/2, Jacomb 4/6)
Half-time: 0–24
Venue: Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria (1,350m above sea level)
Referee: Nika Amashukeli (Georgia)
Attendance: 30,930
Man of the match: Anton Segner (All Blacks)
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International
Springboks seal RGR series with Baltimore blitz over All Blacks
Published
1 month agoon
13th September 2026
The Springboks clinched Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series 3-1, overwhelming the All Blacks 43-28 at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore in the first meeting between the two rivals on American soil. Six tries to four in front of a record US rugby crowd sealed the most emphatic and expansive victory of the series, confirming the world champions’ supremacy at the end of a tour that captivated the sport.
Key moments
3 mins – PENALTY SOUTH AFRICA: Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu kicks an early penalty after the All Blacks are penalised at the breakdown. (South Africa 3–0 All Blacks)
9 mins – TRY ALL BLACKS: Codie Taylor scores after Cam Roigard throws a long pass across the goal-line from a ruck. Taylor’s 24th Test try — an All Blacks hooker record, passing Dane Coles. McKenzie converts. (South Africa 3–7 All Blacks)
14 mins – TRY SOUTH AFRICA: Damian de Allende powers over from close range after a 10-phase surge into the All Blacks’ 22. Feinberg-Mngomezulu converts. (South Africa 10–7 All Blacks)
~18 mins – TMO COMMUNICATION BREAKDOWN. Play is suspended for approximately 10 minutes after the referee loses communication with the Television Match Official. Both captains agree to continue without TMO involvement unless foul play occurs.
22 mins – TRY SOUTH AFRICA: Morne van den Berg sells a dummy and darts over from close range. The scrumhalf converts his own try. (South Africa 17–7 All Blacks)
~38 mins – TRY ALL BLACKS: Will Jordan enters the line from the right wing and races in beside the posts, capping a remarkable 32-phase sequence that sapped the Springbok defence. The move began from a front-of-the-lineout play after South Africa conceded a scrum penalty. McKenzie converts. (South Africa 17–14 All Blacks)
Half-time: South Africa 17–14 All Blacks. The Springboks led through de Allende and van den Berg after a dominant first quarter, but the All Blacks fought back through Taylor’s record try and Jordan’s score from a magnificent 32-phase build-up. A 10-minute TMO breakdown embarrassed the showcase event. The Springboks’ scrum and breakdown superiority was again evident.
48 mins – TRY SOUTH AFRICA: Malcolm Marx scores from a rolling lineout maul after the Springboks win a scrum penalty and kick to the corner. Manie Libbok converts. (South Africa 24–14 All Blacks)
51 mins – TRY SOUTH AFRICA: Pieter-Steph du Toit barges over after Feinberg-Mngomezulu breaks into the All Blacks’ 22 from a scrum and the Springbok forwards batter through. Libbok converts. (South Africa 31–14 All Blacks)
~55 mins – Roigard tackled without the ball. The halfback is taken out after kicking through to the Springbok line. TMO reviews but finds Roigard was offside at the preceding ruck. Penalty reversed. Frustration mounts for the All Blacks.
~63 mins – TRY ALL BLACKS: Ethan Blackadder scores his first Test try after a lineout drive and Roigard’s charge around a ruck creates the opening. McKenzie converts. (South Africa 31–21 All Blacks)
71 mins – TRY SOUTH AFRICA: Kurt-Lee Arendse swoops on a loose ball after a Moorby tackle incident and races more than 50 metres to score. A devastating counterattack. Feinberg-Mngomezulu converts. (South Africa 38–21 All Blacks)
75 mins – TRY SOUTH AFRICA: Cameron Hanekom powers over after taking the ball from Jordan, who had scrambled back in cover. The replacement flanker seals the series. Unconverted. (South Africa 43–21 All Blacks)
80 mins – TRY ALL BLACKS: Beauden Barrett crosses for a consolation score in the final minute. McKenzie converts. (South Africa 43–28 All Blacks)
Full-time: South Africa 43–28 All Blacks. Series: South Africa 3–1.
This wasn’t the suffocating, grinding Springbok rugby that had characterised the second and third Tests. This was champagne stuff — expansive, electric and utterly ruthless. South Africa mixed power with panache, combining their traditional forward dominance with a willingness to give the ball air that had the All Blacks’ defence scrambling and the Baltimore crowd roaring its approval. When Siya Kolisi hoisted the Greatest Rivalry trophy aloft after it was presented by Dan Carter and Schalk Burger, few could argue it had gone to the wrong side.
The All Blacks, true to their free-flowing blueprint, moved the ball with typical slickness and crossed four times themselves, but on this intoxicating Baltimore evening they had no answer to a rampant Springbok side firing on all cylinders. The Springboks made 11 line breaks and played with the freedom of a team given licence to cut loose by a coach who knew his side could not lose the series. Rassie Erasmus had done it again.
“I thought it was epic,” Erasmus said. “The whole series so far has been epic, and they can draw it in Baltimore. But we wanted to finish it properly.”
The All Blacks’ penalty problems surfaced immediately. Feinberg-Mngomezulu kicked a third-minute penalty, and from there the Springboks established the tempo that would define the match. But the tourists struck back in the ninth minute when Cam Roigard, sharp and direct throughout his 80 minutes, threw a long pass across the goal-line from a ruck for captain Codie Taylor to score. In doing so, Taylor claimed his 24th Test try — the most by any All Blacks hooker, overtaking Dane Coles’s long-standing record. McKenzie converted.
The lead was short-lived. The Springboks launched a 10-phase surge into the All Blacks’ 22 and, from a ruck close to the line, Damian de Allende powered over for his fourth try of the series. Feinberg-Mngomezulu converted for 10-7. Then came an extraordinary interruption: the referee lost communication with the Television Match Official, suspending play for approximately ten minutes. Both captains agreed to continue without TMO involvement unless foul play occurred — an embarrassing episode for a match being showcased to a new American audience.
When play resumed, the Springboks pressed their advantage. Josh Moorby was controversially penalised for an offence while attempting to place the ball in a tackle, gifting the hosts field position. From the resulting lineout, man-of-the-match Morne van den Berg cut back against the grain and darted over to score. The scrumhalf then converted his own try — the second time in the series he had done so — for 17-7.
The All Blacks’ response was their finest passage of play in the match. After South Africa conceded a scrum penalty, Taylor found his jumper at the front of the lineout and set in motion a 32-phase movement that sapped the Springboks’ defence. Surge after surge was absorbed before the ball was moved to the backs, and Jordan — entering the line from his right wing — raced in beside the posts. McKenzie converted, and the tourists went to the break trailing by just three at 17-14.
Whatever hope that stirred evaporated within six minutes of the restart. The Springboks scored two tries in three minutes to blow the match apart. First, a scrum penalty gave them the chance to kick to the corner, and from the lineout their maul — that terrifying, irresistible weapon — drove the All Blacks backwards before Marx peeled off to score. Libbok converted for 24-14. From the restart, the Springboks won a scrum and Feinberg-Mngomezulu broke into the All Blacks’ 22 before du Toit drove over from close range. Libbok converted again and at 31-14, the series was over as a contest.
“We were confident that if we got a few things right tonight we’d have a good chance of winning,” Rennie said. “We fell short. It’s disappointing from that perspective.”
The All Blacks’ frustrations multiplied. Roigard kicked through to the Springbok line only to be taken out without the ball — a penalty seemed certain, but the TMO discovered Roigard was offside at the preceding ruck and the decision was reversed. Moorby was then denied a favourable ruling after taking a tackle that wasn’t ruled early. Richie Mo’unga, starting his first Test since the 2023 World Cup final, kicked for the corner and from the lineout Blackadder — busy, abrasive and tireless throughout — scored his first Test try. McKenzie converted for 31-21 and briefly the All Blacks sensed a comeback.
Arendse killed it stone dead. In the 71st minute, the ball bounced loose after the controversial Moorby tackle incident and the Springbok flyer swooped on it, accelerating from inside his own half on a devastating 50-metre run to score under the posts. It was the try of the match and the moment that sealed the series in emphatic fashion. Feinberg-Mngomezulu converted. Replacement flanker Cameron Hanekom added a sixth four minutes later, powering over after taking the ball from Jordan, who had scrambled back in cover.
Beauden Barrett, the 144-cap veteran who had been introduced from the bench, crossed for a consolation in the final minute that McKenzie converted, but the 43-28 scoreline — the largest winning margin of the series — told the story of South African dominance. The try count across four Tests finished 20-18 in the All Blacks’ favour, yet the Springboks won the series 3-1 — a testament to their ability to win the decisive moments through set-piece power, breakdown dominance and the relentless physicality of their bench rotation.
Rennie was honest in defeat. “Yeah, look, the boys put in a massive shift again,” he said. “You look at all the numbers, and everything’s very even, but they were electric, and when they got their opportunities, and we were trying to chase the game late, we put ourselves under a bit more pressure.” On the breakdown discipline that conceded crucial penalties, he was blunt: “Yeah, it’s not good enough. It just does not affect the game either. But it’s dumb.”
The head coach maintained perspective on a tour that had tested his squad to its limits. “We’ve had a captured audience of what turned out to be 49 players,” Rennie said. “I thought the set piece was excellent tonight — scrum and lineout were a real positive. When we get our continuity going, we’re going to score tries. We’re tracking in the right direction, but we’ve got to close the gap and we know that.”
Mo’unga, playing his first Test in three years, labelled the 2026 Springboks a “complete team” and acknowledged the gulf the All Blacks need to bridge before the likely World Cup quarter-final meeting next year. Jordie Barrett was again outstanding at inside centre — arguably the All Blacks’ most consistently excellent player across the entire tour — while Blackadder, Jordan and Peter Lakai all enhanced their reputations in a losing cause.
Taylor, captaining for the final time on tour, hoped the Baltimore crowd took something from the occasion. “I hope American fans left understanding how exciting rugby can be,” the hooker said. Rennie echoed the sentiment: “They obviously love their sports, and they got right behind rugby. I would have liked to see a few more black jerseys, but obviously there’s a lot of South Africans over here.”
The Greatest Rivalry Tour is over. Across eight matches and seven weeks, the All Blacks used 49 players, scored 49 tries, won five of eight fixtures and lost the Test series 3-1 after winning the opener. They return to New Zealand battered, bruised and wiser — with a Bledisloe Cup and a European tour still ahead before the World Cup. The Springboks, meanwhile, have now won everything there is to win. They head to Australia in 2027 as the team to beat, their greatness no longer debatable. As Erasmus said in Cape Town: they are the benchmark. And as Baltimore showed, the gap between benchmark and challenger remains stubbornly difficult to close.
Teams
South Africa: 15 Damian Willemse, 14 Kurt-Lee Arendse, 13 Jesse Kriel, 12 Damian de Allende, 11 Ethan Hooker, 10 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, 9 Morne van den Berg, 8 Jasper Wiese, 7 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 6 Siya Kolisi (c), 5 Ruan Nortje, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Thomas du Toit, 2 Malcolm Marx, 1 Ox Nche.
Replacements: 16 Deon Fourie, 17 Gerhard Steenekamp, 18 Wilco Louw, 19 Cobus Wiese, 20 Cameron Hanekom, 21 Cobus Reinach, 22 Andre Esterhuizen, 23 Manie Libbok.
All Blacks: 15 Damian McKenzie, 14 Will Jordan, 13 Anton Lienert-Brown, 12 Jordie Barrett, 11 Josh Moorby, 10 Richie Mo’unga, 9 Cam Roigard, 8 Peter Lakai, 7 Ethan Blackadder, 6 Tupou Vaa’i, 5 Sam Darry, 4 Patrick Tuipulotu, 3 Fletcher Newell, 2 Codie Taylor (c), 1 Ethan de Groot.
Replacements: 16 Asafo Aumua, 17 Xavier Numia, 18 Tyrel Lomax, 19 Josh Lord, 20 Wallace Sititi, 21 Kyle Preston, 22 Rieko Ioane, 23 Beauden Barrett.
Match details
South Africa 43 (Tries: de Allende, van den Berg, Marx, du Toit, Arendse, Hanekom; Conversions: Feinberg-Mngomezulu 2/3, van den Berg 1/1, Libbok 2/2; Penalties: Feinberg-Mngomezulu 1/1)
All Blacks 28 (Tries: Taylor, Jordan, Blackadder, Barrett; Conversions: McKenzie 4/4)
Half-time: 17–14 (South Africa)
Venue: M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore
Attendance: Record US rugby crowd
Referee: Karl Dickson (England)
Man of the match: Morne van den Berg (South Africa)
Series result: South Africa 3–1
Greatest Rivalry series result
First Test, Ellis Park, Johannesburg: South Africa 16–33 All Blacks
Second Test, DHL Stadium, Cape Town: South Africa 33–26 All Blacks
Third Test, FNB Stadium, Johannesburg: South Africa 29–24 All Blacks
Fourth Test, M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore: South Africa 43–28 All Blacks
Series: South Africa 3–1
International
Mo’unga gets the call in revamped All Blacks for Baltimore finale
Published
1 month agoon
11th September 2026
Dave Rennie has made sweeping changes for the fourth and final Test against the Springboks at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore on Saturday, with Richie Mo’unga handed his first Test start since the 2023 Rugby World Cup final and Ethan Blackadder earning his first in more than two years. Codie Taylor captains a revamped side that must win to prevent the Springboks claiming the Greatest Rivalry series outright.
Key squad news:
- Richie Mo’unga earns his first Test start since the 2023 World Cup final; Ruben Love dropped from the 23
- Codie Taylor captains the All Blacks in the absence of the injured Ardie Savea
- Ethan Blackadder makes his first Test start in more than two years at openside flanker
- Ethan de Groot and Josh Lord return after clearing concussion protocols from the first Test
- Five changes to the starting XV; Newell, Tuipulotu, Lienert-Brown also start
- Fabian Holland unavailable due to illness
- All Blacks must win to draw the series 2-2
The changes are driven by necessity and opportunity. Ardie Savea (dislocated shoulder), Luke Jacobson (elbow tendon) and Quinn Tupaea (MCL) were all injured in the third Test defeat in Soweto, while Fabian Holland has been ruled out through illness. Their absence, combined with the return of Ethan de Groot and Josh Lord — who have cleared World Rugby’s concussion protocols after the sickening first Test collision — has prompted a significant reshuffle.
Mo’unga’s selection at first five-eighth is the headline talking point. The 56-cap playmaker replaces Ruben Love, who drops out of the matchday 23 entirely after starting all three Tests in the series. It is Mo’unga’s first Test start since the one-point World Cup final defeat to these same Springboks in Paris three years ago, completing a remarkable journey from three seasons in Japanese club rugby back to the international arena.
“Richie has been patient and professional since arriving on tour,” Rennie said. “He’s earned this opportunity. His vision, his decision-making and his ability to run a game at the highest level are exactly what we need in a match of this magnitude.”
Blackadder’s inclusion at openside is a reward for his extraordinary tour. The Crusaders flanker’s two-try, 16-carry display against the Lions was the standout individual performance of the franchise matches, and he has been unlucky not to feature in a Test matchday squad until now. He forms a new-look loose forward trio with Tupou Vaa’i, who shifts from lock to blindside, and Peter Lakai at number eight.
The front row sees de Groot return at loosehead alongside Taylor and Fletcher Newell, who replaces Tyrel Lomax at tighthead for his first Test start of the series. Lomax provides impact from the bench. Patrick Tuipulotu partners Sam Darry — the only forward to start in the same position as the third Test — in a second-row combination that offers a different profile from the Holland-Vaa’i and Holland-Darry pairings used earlier in the series. Lord’s return from concussion protocols means he can provide lock cover from the reserves.
In the backs, Anton Lienert-Brown replaces the injured Tupaea at outside centre alongside Jordie Barrett, while Josh Moorby comes onto the left wing. Cam Roigard, Will Jordan and Damian McKenzie are retained, with Rieko Ioane and Leroy Carter providing outside back cover on the bench.
Taylor, who captained the All Blacks for the first time against the Bulls earlier on tour, takes the armband for the biggest match of his 111-cap career. “It’s a huge honour to captain the All Blacks in a Test match of this magnitude,” Taylor said. “We’re desperate to get a result. The boys are hurting after last week and we know what’s at stake.”
Barrett dismissed any suggestion the All Blacks might be mentally or physically spent after seven weeks on tour. “We’ve still got a lot to play for,” Barrett said. “We came here to win a series and while that’s no longer possible, sharing it is the next best thing. We owe it to ourselves and everyone back home to finish this tour the right way.”
The match marks the first time the All Blacks and Springboks have met on American soil. M&T Bank Stadium, the 70,257-capacity home of the NFL’s Baltimore Ravens, will host the sixth All Blacks Test played in the United States, following matches in Chicago, Washington DC and San Diego. Baltimore is a candidate city for the 2031 Rugby World Cup.
The series stands at 2-1 in the Springboks’ favour. A New Zealand victory would see each nation retain one half of the Greatest Rivalry trophy in a drawn series. Defeat would confirm the first series loss for an All Blacks touring side in South Africa since 1976 and hand the Springboks both halves of the silverware.
“This is why you play rugby,” Rennie said. “A deciding Test match against the best team in the world in front of 70,000 people. We know the Boks will be desperate to finish it here, but so are we. We’ve shown throughout this tour that we can beat anyone when we’re at our best. Now we need to deliver the performance of the tour.”
All Blacks team for the fourth Test
M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore. Saturday 12 September, kick-off 5pm local time (Sunday 13 September, 9am NZT).
1. Ethan de Groot (44 caps), 2. Codie Taylor (c) (111), 3. Fletcher Newell (39), 4. Patrick Tuipulotu (58), 5. Sam Darry (11), 6. Tupou Vaa’i (50), 7. Ethan Blackadder (15), 8. Peter Lakai (13), 9. Cam Roigard (23), 10. Richie Mo’unga (56), 11. Josh Moorby (4), 12. Jordie Barrett (84), 13. Anton Lienert-Brown (92), 14. Will Jordan (60), 15. Damian McKenzie (80).
Reserves: 16. Asafo Aumua (25), 17. Xavier Numia (4), 18. Tyrel Lomax (54), 19. Josh Lord (16), 20. Wallace Sititi (22), 21. Kyle Preston (4), 22. Rieko Ioane (89), 23. Leroy Carter (10).
International
Springboks make two changes for Baltimore Test against All Blacks
Published
2 months agoon
9th September 2026
Rassie Erasmus has made just two changes to the Springbok starting XV for the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series decider against the All Blacks at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore on Saturday, sending the clearest possible signal that he intends to go for the kill and clinch a 3-1 series victory on American soil.
Key team news:
- Damian Willemse returns at fullback in place of the injured Cheslin Kolbe, who broke his jaw in the third Test and has remained in South Africa
- Morne van den Berg earns his first start of the series at scrum-half, with Cobus Reinach dropping to the bench
- The forward pack is unchanged for the third consecutive Test
- A Springbok victory would seal a 3-1 series win; an All Blacks victory would draw the series
- Eben Etzebeth extends his record as the most capped Springbok to 146 Tests
- The loose trio of Kolisi, du Toit and Wiese will start together for a record 19th time
- It is the first Springbok Test in history to be played in Baltimore
- Kick-off is at 23:00 SA time (17:00 EDT)
The decision to retain the same matchday squad with only injury-enforced and form-based adjustments is a statement of intent from Erasmus. Having won the second and third Tests to take a 2-1 lead, the Springbok coach is backing the combinations that turned the series around rather than rotating for the finale.
Only two changes to the #Springboks team for Saturday's RGR decider in Baltimore – more here: https://t.co/ULt9zgTIeY #ForeverGreenForeverGold #RugbysGreatestRivalry pic.twitter.com/6lai1VcHdq
— Springboks (@Springboks) September 7, 2026
“We feel that the team is well settled and all the players delivered in their respective roles in the last two matches, so we believe selecting the same matchday squad, and naming Damian back in his regular position, makes sense for the closing match of the series,” Erasmus said. “These players also know exactly what to expect from a very determined All Blacks team, who will give everything to draw the series this weekend.”
Willemse’s return is straightforward. The fullback started the first two Tests before a hamstring injury ruled him out in Cape Town, with Kolbe deputising superbly at 15 across the second and third matches. Kolbe’s broken jaw, sustained at FNB Stadium, has ended his series and he was among six players who remained in South Africa as the squad flew to the United States.
“Damian started the first two Tests and had it not been for a niggle last week, he would have also started that match, so it’s good to have him back,” Erasmus said. “He is a quality player, and he knows the guys around him very well, so it will simply be a matter of him picking up where he left off before last week.”
The more intriguing selection is van den Berg’s promotion ahead of Reinach. The Lions scrum-half made a telling impact off the bench in the third Test and Erasmus was effusive in his praise. “Morne made a fantastic impact when he took the field last week, and he deserves a chance to start, so Cobus switches to the bench where he will add experience and skill in this vital match,” the Springbok coach said.
He expanded on van den Berg’s journey to this point. “He’s not a youngster. I think he’s 27 or something like that already, so he’s not a youngster to break through. But we’ve always tracked him, and I think he’s just been unfortunate with injuries and also some really good nines that played ahead of him or got opportunities ahead of him,” Erasmus said. “After his last injury, we thought it was going to be a tough year for him to get back into the mix, but he really did his rehab really well, and he’s back to full fitness. I think last week when he got his opportunity, he really did well, and we think he deserves a start.”
The forward pack is unchanged for the third week running. Nche, Marx and Louw continue in the front row, Etzebeth and Nortje in the second row, and captain Kolisi, du Toit and Wiese in a loose trio that will extend its own record to 19 Test starts together. Etzebeth stretches his all-time caps mark to 146, while Wiese needs just one more appearance after this match to reach 50 caps.
In the backline, Feinberg-Mngomezulu starts at fly-half for a fifth consecutive Test, with Arendse and Hooker on the wings and de Allende and Kriel continuing their settled midfield partnership. The bench is also unchanged from the third Test — Fourie, Steenekamp, Thomas du Toit, de Jager, Esterhuizen and Hanekom as the six forward replacements, with Reinach and Libbok the two specialist backs.
Erasmus confirmed that Handre Pollard, who has missed the last three Tests with a calf injury, is fit again and will likely feature against Australia in Perth on 27 September — the one-off Test the squad will travel to directly from Baltimore. Franco Mostert is also expected to return for that fixture.
Saturday’s match will be the first Springbok Test in Baltimore and only the fourth in the United States. South Africa have played three previous Tests on American soil — victories over the USA in 1981 and 2001, and a narrow 22-20 defeat to Wales in Washington DC in 2018, which was Erasmus’s first match in charge as head coach. The 2031 Rugby World Cup will be hosted in the USA, lending additional significance to high-profile fixtures on American soil.
Erasmus was blunt about the stakes. “If we don’t win, then we have achieved nothing,” he said.
He expected the All Blacks, who have lost Ardie Savea, Luke Jacobson and Quinn Tupaea to series-ending injuries from the third Test, to come out swinging regardless. “We have faced the All Blacks three weeks in a row, and just like us, they are a proud team who showed last week that they will never stop fighting until the final whistle, so we are under no illusions about the magnitude of the challenge ahead this weekend,” Erasmus said.
“That said, we are equally determined to finish the series strongly and give everything to lift the trophy, and the players are excited about the match. We have no doubt that it’s going to be another epic encounter that will require a full-blown 80-minute effort on attack and defence.”
Springboks:
15. Damian Willemse (DHL Stormers, 54 caps)
14. Kurt-Lee Arendse (Mitsubishi Dynaboars, 34 caps)
13. Jesse Kriel (Canon Eagles, 93 caps)
12. Damian de Allende (Wild Knights, 102 caps)
11. Ethan Hooker (Hollywoodbets Sharks, 12 caps)
10. Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu (DHL Stormers, 23 caps)
9. Morne van den Berg (Lions, 9 caps)
8. Jasper Wiese (Urayasu D-Rocks, 48 caps)
7. Pieter-Steph du Toit (Toyota Verblitz, 101 caps)
6. Siya Kolisi (c) (DHL Stormers, 106 caps)
5. Ruan Nortje (Kubota Spears, 23 caps)
4. Eben Etzebeth (Hollywoodbets Sharks, 145 caps)
3. Wilco Louw (DHL Stormers, 34 caps)
2. Malcolm Marx (Kubota Spears, 92 caps)
1. Ox Nche (Hollywoodbets Sharks, 51 caps)
Replacements:
16. Deon Fourie (DHL Stormers, 15 caps)
17. Gerhard Steenekamp (Vodacom Bulls, 22 caps)
18. Thomas du Toit (Hollywoodbets Sharks, 36 caps)
19. Lood de Jager (Wild Knights, 76 caps)
20. Andre Esterhuizen (Hollywoodbets Sharks, 34 caps)
21. Cameron Hanekom (Vodacom Bulls, 5 caps)
22. Cobus Reinach (DHL Stormers, 56 caps)
23. Manie Libbok (Kintetsu Liners, 33 caps)
Match details: South Africa v New Zealand, M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore. Saturday 12 September (Saturday 13 September NZT), 17:00 EDT / 23:00 SA time. Live on SuperSport.

