South Africa vs New Zealand Tips - Springboks domination to continue in Rugby Championship

The Springboks have won their last three matches against New Zealand. Last week, South Africa won 31-27.

South Africa are in incredible form at the moment and look set to win the Rugby Championship for the first time since 2019. They are unbeaten in the first three matches of the tournament and picked up bonus point wins in the first two.

After thrashing Australia twice away from home in the opening two rounds, South Africa returned home for a double header against arch-rivals, New Zealand. The Springboks were favourites going into the match at Emirates Airline Park, but it was the All Blacks who made all the early plays.

South Africa were under constant pressure in the first half but managed to go into the sheds a point down. The All Blacks steamed out of the blocks in the second half, scoring an early try.

It looked like one of those days for South Africa again where they failed to live up to the favourites tag. However, the bench made all the difference in the final 20 minutes as the hosts won 31-27.

New Zealand have won win from three matches in the Rugby Championship, not a position they often find themselves in. After losing to Argentina in round one, they bounced back to beat the same opponents in round two comfortably.

Form is often thrown out of the window when South Africa and New Zealand meet, and that was again the case this past weekend. New Zealand came at the hosts and dominated the first hour of the game, leading 27-17 at the 60-minute mark.

However, South Africa’s experience and quality bench paid off as the All Blacks made mistake after mistake in the final 20 minutes. The hosts scored two unanswered tries in that span to clinch a four-point win.