Springboks at risk of further World Rugby rankings slide!

It can’t be forgotten that the Springboks started the year at the summit of the World Rugby rankings, where they had remained quite firmly positioned since the 2019 World Cup.

However, a 50% win record in 2022 has seen the Boks fall to third place, and it could get worse from here if results don’t go their way this weekend.

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It’s been confirmed that South Africa will fall two places if they lose to Australia and New Zealand beat Argentina. It can also happen if Los Pumas triumph by more than 15 points and South Africa lose by the same margin.

However, the Springboks will remain in third if they beat Australia. The Wallabies, meanwhile, can fall two places to a new low of eighth if they lose by more than 15 points and Argentina avoid defeat against New Zealand.

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Here are some other key takeaways from the latest rankings permutations:

• Argentina will be the higher ranked of the two teams if they secure back-to-back wins over New Zealand, climbing to fifth and condemning the All Blacks to a new low of sixth
• Los Pumas have not been ranked as high as sixth since June 2016
• New Zealand could fall to seventh in defeat, if they lose by more than 15 points and Australia win
• If Argentina and Australia both win by more than 15 points, Los Pumas will climb to fourth for the first time since Rugby World Cup 2015
• New Zealand will climb two places to third if they beat Argentina by more than 15 points and South Africa lose again in Australia
• Los Pumas cannot fall lower than seventh, even if beaten by more than 15 points
• They could actually climb even in defeat if Australia are also beaten
• Australia cannot quite catch South Africa in the rankings as even a victory by more than 15 points would see the Wallabies trail by 0.35 rating points

SPRINGBOKS TEAM TO FACE AUSTRALIA IN SYDNEY:

15 – Willie le Roux (Toyota Verblitz) – 76 caps, 65 pts (13t)
14 – Canan Moodie (Vodacom Bulls) – uncapped
13 – Jesse Kriel (Canon Eagles) – 53 caps, 60 pts (12t)
12 – Damian de Allende (Wild Knights) – 63 caps, 35 pts (7t)
11 – Makazole Mapimpi (Cell C Sharks) – 30 caps, 105 pts (21t)
10 – Damian Willemse (DHL Stormers) – 21 caps, 12 pts (1t, 2c, 1p)
9 – Jaden Hendrikse (Cell C Sharks) – 7 caps, 5 pts (1t)

8 – Jasper Wiese (Leicester Tigers) – 15 caps, 0 pts
7 – Franco Mostert (Honda Heat) – 56 caps, 5pts (1t)
6 – Siya Kolisi (captain, Cell C Sharks) – 68 caps, 35 pts (7t)
5 – Lood de Jager (Wild Knights) – 61 caps, 25 pts (5t)
4 – Eben Etzebeth (Cell C Sharks) – 103 caps, 15 pts (3t)
3 – Frans Malherbe (DHL Stormers) – 51 caps, 5 pts (1t)
2 – Malcolm Marx (Kubota Spears) – 52 caps, 55 pts (11t)
1 – Steven Kitshoff (DHL Stormers) – 64 caps, 5 pts (1t)

Replacements:

16 – Deon Fourie (DHL Stormers) – 1 cap, 0pts
17 – Ox Nche (Cell C Sharks) – 12 caps, 0pts
18 – Trevor Nyakane (Racing 92) – 57 caps, 5pts (1t)
19 – Kwagga Smith (Shizuoka Blue Revs) – 24 caps, 15 pts (3t)
20 – Duane Vermeulen (Ulster) – 63 caps, 15 pts (3t)
21 – Cobus Reinach (Montpellier) – 21 caps, 40pts (8t)
22 – Frans Steyn (Toyota Cheetahs) – 75 caps, 150 pts (11t, 7c, 24p, 3d)
23 – Warrick Gelant (Racing 92) – 11 caps, 15 pts (3t)

The Boks’ record against the Wallabies in Australia:

Played 42; Won 12; Lost 28; Drawn 2; Points for: 702, Points against: 925; Tries scored 82, Tries conceded 94; Highest score 38-12 in Brisbane (2013); Biggest win 26 points in Brisbane (2013). Win % 28,6%. 

Milestones:

1. Malcolm Marx is the top try scorer in the squad against Australia with three tries in seven Test matches.
2. Siya Kolisi has played 38 Tests as captain, making him the second most capped Springbok captain behind John Smit, who led the team in 83 Tests.

Miscellaneous:

1. The total Test caps for the Springbok starting line-up is
2. There are 257 caps in the backline with 470 caps amongst the forwards. On the bench there are a further 264
3. The average caps per player in the backline are 36, the forwards 58, while the players on the bench average 33.