The southern hemisphere sides return to their Super Rugby season after a dominant display against their northern counterparts on the international stage.
The teams would have enjoyed the break as it gave their players time to recover and freshen up for the final three weeks of the season.
The Tests also allowed representative players to increase their performance level against international opposition and replicate that form heading into the finals.
The south dominated the north, winning eight of the ten Test matches over the three weeks.
The only blemishes on an almost impeccable record were Scotland’s 9-6 upset victory over Australia and South Africa and England’s 14-all draw in the final match of their series.
The world’s three best rugby countries were always going to be hard to topple for the touring sides.
There is one constant that makes Australia, New Zealand and South Africa such tough opposition for European countries: Super Rugby.
The Super Rugby competition is the premier league of club rugby in the world.
It boasts the best players from the three best countries playing against each other, developing a standard of rugby that is unmatchable by all of Europe.
The competition is not the sole factor for the south’s dominance but it is a contributing one.
The home ground advantage for New Zealand, South Africa and particularly Australia was a huge asset.
The Wallabies used the crowd’s momentum in their second and third Tests against Wales to scrape home and claim an unconvincing series whitewash.
Also the weather conditions are very different. The England side had to adapt to the increased altitude in South Africa.
The scheduling of the tests did not favour the northern sides, as it is summer in the north.
The Aviva English Premiership is England’s equivalent of the Super Rugby competition and is where the majority of the English side is chosen from.
The competition’s last regular season match was played on the fifth of May.
Although it was only a month before the Test matches, the Southern Hemisphere sides were in the midst of the Super Rugby season.
Morne Steyn, Will Genia and Richie McCaw all put in strong showings during the June internationals and were pivotal in the dominance of their respective countries.
With the Super Rugby finals three weeks away, representative players needed to improve their club form by putting in strong performances on the international stage.
While the home field advantage was a contributing factor in the south’s dominance, the standard of the Super Rugby competition is the main factor that southern hemisphere teams remain out of reach.
IvanN
Roar Guru
I was at the game, I was booing because i was dissapointed at the way the Boks were playing, Steyns missed goals and kicking away posession was just a scapegoat for the frustration we were all feeling. what a rubbish display by the Boks. Theyd better get it right for the 4N
tonysalerno
Roar Guru
Gpc, Yea i'm not doubting the fact that Australia haven't always been good but super rugby as a mesh of the three best rugby countries makes it tough for European teams to beat them.
mania
Guest
sorry biltongbek, missed the last test. had it recored but once i heard it was a draw and the worse perfomance of the boks yet i lost interest and havent watched it. i fully agree with you though. the true measure of a great player is how they perform iwhen the chips are down and the pressures on. this wasnt a loss but i imagine the thought of losing was in the boks minds. morne is imo a victim of listening to the coaches and sticking to the game plan. was this a call from meyer to constantly kick it? and if so why wasnt JDV over ruling him and using other tactics? morne needs to show some balls and quit kissing coaches a55es so much. he did it through out the last 4 seasons because player power (matfield, smit and FDP) told him to despite it being an archaic flawed game plan. i will say tho that this is excuses. unless morne grows a couple and starts making decisions that are good for the team and himself then he has to go. still i cant discount the class morne has but if he wants to be better and evolve he's going to have make some decisions for himself despite whatever the coach has told him.
Mania, I agree he has evolved and in the first two tests his general play has omproved, but the mark of true class is when the chips are down, and there he failed dismally, he kept on kicking possession away, where he should rather have instigated some attacking play. He panicked and instead of thinking " we must score" his mentality was " let's just get away"
mania
Guest
thanx tony. i like what morne's doing, instead of disapearing into the wood work he's evolving his game. its a shame that his kicking has gone awry but this is temporary. in the mean time he's introducing a running game into his repetoire. admittedly he's pretty average at attacking the line but mehrtens wasnt a speedster and was one the AB's greatest rugby genius'. morne has this kind of potential i reckon. morne will get better. his defensive work in the series imo was awesome relative to past seasons
mania
Guest
loosies Vermulen, Burger and Alberts with hBrussow and juanSmith on the bench. now thats scarier. biltongbek - steyn is class. this series was just a moment of adjustment for him. steyn will rock in the 4N
Gpc
Guest
Yeh if I remember correctly we were better before super rugby came in anyway. 87,91,&95 tell the story. There was the super10 etc but it is a shadow of what we have now.
He is eating croussants in France and drinking wine by the bottle.
Dc of nz
Guest
Where is my favorite Bakkies Botha!? Is he injured? that man is a bokke legend ....signed AB fan
Donnytwo
Guest
Morne a legend? Please! I hope they keep picking him in the Boks because they dont have any chance of beating the All Blacks with him as pivot. Patrick Lambie is a far better player and is a future star, along with the Cheetah's flyhalf Goosen. Super Rugby is equally as good for all three nations. Unfortunately for Australia they dont have the depth to sustain five teams, hence the inclusion of NZ journeymen and Sydney club players in the Rebels. Where NZ and SA have a real advantage is in the secondary competitions, Currie Cup and ITM Cup. These comps are the breeding ground for the Super Rugby teams.
Steyn is a legend kicker, his all round attacking game has always been under scrutiny.
Rusty
Roar Guru
that sir would be my pick of back rows
tonysalerno
Roar Guru
Well said mania: " Class is permanent and Morne is class."
tonysalerno
Roar Guru
I agree with both Carnivean and Riccardo that the back row mentioned is outstanding and not many teams could withstand an those three back rowers. C'mon guys, Steyn is a legend. Granted he didn't play to the standard we are used to in the test matches but he is such a great player that our expectations are extremely high :)
Riccardo
Guest
That's a pretty scary back row Carnivean...
Carnivean
Guest
SA and Aus get a huge benefit from playing the NZ teams regularly. SA play teams they can't bash into submission, and Australia play teams they can't run around. NZ get a benefit of keeping their players playing locally. Playing the elite level of competition keeps them all honed, and playing against a range of tactics. NH rugby doesn't seem to have the variety of tactics (though I will concede a level of ignorance here).
Carnivean
Guest
A back row of Vermulen, Burger and Alberts would be scary for it's size, skill, and even smarts. If you then bring Brussow on late in the game...
Carnivean
Guest
They were booing him kicking away possession in the final 12 minutes, with them needing points to finish the match.
Mike
Guest
Supre15 is extremely important to Australia because we don't have a national club comp and no practicable way of getting one.
B-Rock
Roar Guru
SR is a two edged sword for Australia IMO The elite players get better as they are playing at a high level consistently. But depth suffers due to a lack of teams - if our club rugby comp was a higher standard this would be less of an issue, as reflected in the curry cup and NPC Net net SR is clearly a positive for the Wallabies and the SH but the question which must be asked is whether the strength of SR is a result of the competing countries or the competing countries are strong because of SR? NZ, SA and AUS were hardly minnows prior to SR were they?