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The All Blacks host the Springboks at Westpac Stadium in Wellington, New Zealand, for their first meeting of the 2014 Rugby Championship. Join The Roar for live scores and coverage from 5:30pm (AEST).
The Rugby Championship has entered its second half and South Africa currently sit one point ahead of Australia. They also sit a mere 0.32 points above Australia in IRB rankings. New Zealand are way out on top.
Simply, South Africa will need to deliver their best game ever walk away victorious.
The Springbok’s best form lately was against the All Blacks last year. Some have opined they lost the match chasing Rugby Championship points, instead of trying to win the game. They will want to make amends today.
All the while, the All Blacks will look to continue their relentless winning campaign. They have won the last five home games against South Africa, scoring 20 tries along the way.
They have also never lost against the Springboks at Westpac Stadium and will plan to keep it that way today.
Nobody wants to scrummage against the Pumas
For the first time in a long while – probably ever – both teams will be happy to scrummage each other. Whilst the All Blacks may be happy with their performance in the loose from last week, the Springboks will look to improve significantly and score tries!
Brodie will want to get Eben
Eben Etzebeth is only three games post-injury and has not yet returned to last year’s destructive form. Brodie Retallick will want to keep things that way.
He was quieter in Sydney and Napier, but was colossal against the Wallabies in Auckland. Jeremy Thrush starts for the first time this year and will duel with lineout swiper Victor Matfield.
As all four locks were a bit quiet last week in the loose, they will aim to wreak havoc today.
Speed in the slosh
Willie Le Roux has run two metres more than Julian Savea. They and the other outside backs will look forward to opportunities off the ruck to score tries in this match.
In this score, Savea is one ahead of Cornal Hendricks (and Israel Folau). They will run closer to the ruck, due to wet conditions.
Last week, Springboks’ midfield leaks helped the Wallabies make easy metres. They cannot afford a repeat, especially against New Zealand.
Winner takes halves
With the return of Aaron Cruden, the All Blacks will field the most dangerous halves on the globe.
Their knife fight will be against flyhalf Handre Pollard and ex-flyhalf Ruan Pienaar, who played in last year’s game in Auckland.
Pollard is Heyneke Meyer’s high-risk, high-yield gambit. His selection indicates that all Springboks games and selections since last year was to prepare for this coin flip.
But it will all come to nought without quick recycle, or if a team that cannot align their defence or attack-line once the kick is on – most likely from the All Blacks.
Ruck and Recycle
The ability of Francois Louw, Marcell Coetzee and Duane Vermeulen to get their team moving forward and moving quickly will be critical to their chances of winning.
Kieran Read, Richie McCaw, and Stephen Luatua will have other ideas. They will look to slow the Springboks’ advance and to create time and exploit space in attack.
Kicks for tricks
After watching the Auckland game, the Springboks will be thanking the Gods for wet weather. But there may be kicks from both sides to force mistakes. However, spectators will be hoping for a faster paced match and legendary tries.
Hang on to your hats. Its going to be big!
Join The Roar for live scores and coverage from 5:30pm (AEST).
If you are following the action live, be sure to share your thoughts on the match in the comments below.
Final Score
All Blacks: 14
Springboks: 10
Join The Roar rugby editor Christy Doran, former Wallaby Matt Toomua and a cast of regular and special guests as they look at the biggest issues in the game on The Roar Rugby Podcast. If you’re looking for great odds on the next game check out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.