The much anticipated Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series kicks off when the All Blacks take on the Stormers in the tours opening match at the Cape Town Stadium on Friday night, and loose forward Simon Parker says they will be going in all guns blazing. It is the first old school tour between the two countries in three decades, and sees the All Blacks face all four of South Africa’s URC teams, as well as the Springboks in a four-Test series. A 44-man All Blacks squad was named for the tour, and coach Dave Rennie said that he was eager to play everyone before the first Test against the Boks at Ellis Park on Saturday 22nd August. The first three tour matches, against the Stormers, Sharks and Bulls, will thus essentially be an audition for many of the All Blacks squad, to prove they deserve to be in the match 23 for the first Test. “We’re treating ‌every game (on tour) as if it were a test ‌match. We’re training for every match as we ‌would a test match, and whoever gets to ⁠pull the jersey on has a ‌responsibility to go out there and perform,” said Parker after a training session on Monday. “I’m excited and champing at the bit to get out there. This isn’t a charity so it’s not like everyone deserves a crack, so you just have to prepare according to your role, which I’m looking forward to.” Great opportunity Although it is the first match on tour, the All Blacks will likely be looking to lay down a marker, and Parker admitted that they were particularly looking forward to the physical battle that they expect to take on. “I think it’s a great opportunity for us. It’s one we are looking to go and win. So really looking forward ⁠to getting out there. At the end of the day, it just comes down to ‌ whatever team shows up and whatever team wants it more,” said Parker. “There’s plenty of battles and technical awareness stuff that’ll come through, but at the end of the day, it’s the team that wants it (that will win). Physicality will be important. That’s no surprise playing against South Africans. That’s what they are, that’s part of their DNA, so it’s a battle we’re looking forward to.” Although they don’t play the SA franchises any more, Parker said that some of the players still keep an eye on the SA teams in the URC, and they have been told a few things by some of the older players who toured the country during Super Rugby. “I wouldn’t say we don’t watch the South African teams. Plenty of the boys have an interest in the URC games, especially the last couple of years with some of the boys representing Leinster (Jordie Barrett and Rieko Ioane),” explained Parker. “Speaking to the boys that did play (Super Rugby), they loved coming over (to SA) and getting a couple of weeks on tour. The Stormers have a big pack and great backs as well, so, it’ll be a great test for us ⁠first up.”

The referees for the highly-anticipated Test series between the Springboks and All Blacks in South Africa later this month and in early September have been announced. The 2019 and 2023 world champions take on the 2011 and 2015 World Cup winners, New Zealand, in four Tests in the coming weeks – at Ellis Park, Cape Town Stadium, and FNB Stadium, with the fourth Test taking place in Baltimore, USA. The touring All Blacks also face all four of the South African United Rugby Championship teams, starting with the Stormers in Cape Town this weekend. They then face the Sharks in Durban, the Bulls in Pretoria and the Lions in Joburg. World Rugby on Tuesday revealed the referees who’ll take charge of the four Tests between the Boks and All Blacks. Matthew Carley of England will handle the first Test at Ellis Park on 22 August, while Nika Amashukeli of Georgia will take charge of the second Test in Cape Town on 29 August. Angus Gardner of Australia will referee the third Test of Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series at the FNB Stadium on 5 September, while Karl Dickson of England will then take charge of the fourth Test at the M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore, USA, on 12 September. The four men will also officiate the other four matches on the All Blacks’ tour of South Africa against the Stormers, Sharks, Bulls and Lions. Dickson is believed to be in line to handle this Friday’s game against the Stormers.

New Zealand hooker George Bell has returned home from South Africa after suffering a calf strain while training in Cape Town, the All Blacks announced on Tuesday. Bell is expected to be sidelined for up to six weeks, ruling him out of the All Blacks tour of South Africa, which ends on September 12. “We are all gutted for George, to be ruled out of the tour so early,” head coach Dave Rennie said. “He’s had a frustrating past few months with injury so it’s a real blow for him to have injured his calf again. “We look forward to seeing him return (for his club) and put himself in a position to push for All Blacks selection later in the year.” Taranaki and Blues hooker Bradley Slater, 27, has been called up to replace Bell, and is expected to arrive in South Africa on Wednesday. New Zealand launch an eight-match tour, which includes four Tests, on Friday against the Stormers in Cape Town.

A nearly three-month injury lay-off gave scrumhalf Morné van den Berg time to work on himself physically and mentally, and he is now raring to go when the Springboks take on Argentina in a one-off Test match in Buenos Aires on Saturday. The No 9 injured his bicep while playing for the Lions during their final league phase United Rugby Championship match against Munster in May. That meant he missed their first-ever, and only, play-off in the competition – their quarter-final against Leinster. While it was initially believed the 28-year-old would be out of action for four to six months, he recovered much faster than expected. Van den Berg is now among a group of Springboks expected to return from injury against Argentina on Saturday. Siya Kolisi, Eben Etzebeth, Lood de Jager, and Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu should also feature in Tuesday’s team announcement. ‘Massive privilege’ It was an exciting turn of events for Van den Berg, who played four of his six Tests in a breakthrough season last year, scoring tries in every one of them. “It’s a massive privilege to be back. Last week’s game was a good introduction,” he said on Monday, apparently referring to a training match within the Springbok camp. He said he was motivated to return to fitness quickly as the international season loomed, though he has already missed the first three Nations Championship matches, and a non-Test against the Barbarians, all won by the Springboks. “I’m really blessed. There are incredible people on my side who helped me so much. I am really feeling good again.” Van den Berg happy for Springbok teammates He said instead of feeling sorry for himself while out of action, or being bothered how scrumhalves such as Embrose Papier and Herschel Jantjies were being introduced back into the Springbok environment while he, Grant Williams and Cobus Reinach were racing to get fit, he took a positive approach. “It’s so far completely out of your control. Players put their hand up throughout the year, and you are happy for them. They put in the effort and got rewarded. “But in my case, I can only face what is in front of me. I trust the plan that the Lord has for me and that’s the scenario I saw. “I was in a different phase than they were, the boys getting chances. So I had an opportunity to upskill and get fitter, do work on my mentality, to get stronger.” He said he aimed to make the best out of his challenging situation. “Then to come back and compete with them. It’s incredible. I like to think that we make each other better. “At the end of the day, you serve the Springboks. So whatever it takes to make the Springboks better, when you get into the system, you do it.”

The successful turnout and atmosphere at the University of Johannesburg (UJ) Stadium during the Lions’ Currie Cup match against the Bulls on the weekend could be built on, rather than complicating matters as some believe. The Lions played their third-round match at the university grounds in the relatively quiet suburb of Westdene after drawing fewer than 1,000 spectators to the 62,000-capacity Ellis Park for their victory over the Pumas the previous week, despite tickets costing just R40. The decision proved an overwhelming success, with the Lions confirming just under 4,000 spectators in attendance. This despite the match being played on a cold winter afternoon at a new venue. The players embraced the occasion too, running in six tries to beat the Bulls with a bonus point. The plan, however, remains to host their next home Currie Cup match against Boland at Wits Stadium before moving all foreseeable home fixtures back to Ellis Park. ALSO READ: SA Rugby struggling to sell tickets for All Blacks’ games against URC teams Ellis Park deemed unsafe Lions CEO Rudolf Straeuli said before the move that he expected the games at UJ and Wits to be “an overwhelming success”. If they were, the union would use them to bolster its efforts to attract those audiences – particularly students – to Ellis Park through strategic marketing and collaborations. “Ellis Park will always be the home of the Lions,” he said. Failure to attract crowds to the crime-affected inner-city stadium has long been a problem for the Joburg union. It has gone to great lengths to clean up the area and improve safety, but many supporters still feel uneasy travelling to and parking in the precinct. Lions could try both, for now The game at UJ was a success, and you would expect a similar outcome when the Lions play Boland at Wits. Some argue that is all the more reason to move all the Lions’ Currie Cup and United Rugby Championship matches to venues like those. But why not do both? At least for now. If Straeuli and the Lions board want to enjoy the benefits of bigger crowds at UJ and Wits from time to time, why not target those venues for selected fixtures? At the same time, they can continue building support for Ellis Park through the marketing and collaborations Straeuli spoke about. It doesn’t have to be one or the other. The Lions can capitalise on what worked at UJ without giving up on their traditional home.

The All Blacks are back in the country. It’s the first tour in 30 years and already “Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry” is heating up. There was a wonderful Cape Town welcome for the New Zealanders at the Cape Town stadium and, immediately, some people started calling out the “Manenberg Maoris” for not getting behind the Boks instead. It’s a sore point, but it shouldn’t be. You can’t tell people to get over the hurt and inhumanity of apartheid because you have. But, equally, why is it even an issue? We’ve got legions of reborn Saffas in the diasporas of Australia, New Zealand, the UK and even parts of North America. They proudly don their green-and-gold jerseys, conveniently forgetting it was the prospect of the end of apartheid and an ANC government that made them emigrate in the first place. There are people in KwaZulu-Natal, who’ve never been further than Chatsworth, fanatical about Manchester United. South Joburg is full of die-hard English premiership fans – even our Bok skipper is mad about Liverpool. Give Siya Kolisi his due. He went to Anfield to watch games and counts Jurgen Klopp, one of Liverpool’s best managers, as a personal friend. We can’t force people to back the Boks, irrespective what Kolisi and Rassie Erasmus have done in both creating a winning culture on the field and an unprecedented nation-building campaign off the field. What we can do is recognise, as our national motto urges us: !ke e: /xarra //ke or “diverse people unite”. We can’t speak about diversity unless we allow Van der Merwes and Steenkamps to join the Brakpan Caledonian Society without a hint of derision or pity. We can’t speak of diversity uniting unless we can understand Cassinga, Cuito Cuanavale and Magoo’s Bar within each other’s context. We can’t make sense of the future unless we start to truly understand the past and not try sweep it under the carpet. There is a good reason why we have Manenberg Maoris. We should treasure them because they hold up a mirror to what was and to what should have been, but is still not a reality to many. None of that should detract from Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry. On the contrary, it just lets it properly live up to its billing. As the kids say, August is going to be lit – in more ways than one.

Springbok assistant coach Deon Davids said veteran Springboks returning from injury had acquitted themselves well in training and, while they are expected to give their all, they will be managed carefully during Saturday’s one-off Test against Argentina. Regular captain Siya Kolisi, most-capped Springbok Eben Etzebeth, Lood de Jager, Morné van den Berg and Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu are all expected to make a return in Buenos Aires. Most of these players have been injured for a few months, with Etzebeth and De Jager each only playing one match for their franchises in 2026. But Davids said Monday they would also be expected to “press as hard as they can for as long as they can” as the South African rugby team pursue their goals on a four-match winning streak this season, and having won the last three encounters against Argentina. Argentina no warm-up “We are proud of our records and the way we get an opportunity to take our standards from game to game,” Davids said. “Argentina… are very passionate and gutsy, especially when playing in Argentina. “If you are coming to Argentina seeing it as a start or warm-up [to the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series against New Zealand], I think that’s a big mistake.” Argentina head coach Felipe Contepomi was forced to select 10 uncapped players in a 34-man squad to face the Springboks due to European club commitments. Davids said the young Los Pumas side would be out to prove a point. But the returning Springboks would also want to make an impact. “From a set-piece perspective, we all know they are experienced guys. They mean a lot,” he said of De Jager and Etzebeth around the lineout. “We hope that they find their feet quite well. We had a very good build-up in this game in our camp week. “Now it’s a fantastic opportunity for them to play, which is important as we build towards the rest of the season.” Veteran Springboks won’t be overworked The assistant coach said the Springboks had taken into account how some have not played in a while. “We will take our lead in terms of the intensity and how the game is played,” Davids explained. “We have specific plans in terms of how we want to manage them throughout the next couple of games. For them just to get into it, express themselves, press as hard as they can for as long as they can – that is important for us.” He said these players are ready to play. But a full matchday 23 ensures a result. So no individuals would be overworked.

The Stormers’ own Lazarus, Deon Fourie, is fired up for another crack at the All Blacks when Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry (RGR) tour officially kicks off at the Cape Town Stadium on Friday night. Fourie, just over a month shy of his 40th birthday, has once again defied the odds to recover from a serious injury, to continue a playing career that could have been ended by a number of other big injuries over the past few years. He is now in the frame to face the All Blacks for the second time, but the first for his franchise, in the opening match of the RGR series, which is a match that many of the players will be unable to ever experience again. “It’s a massive occasion. We have spoken about how fortunate it is to get one game against the All Blacks. Probably 80 or 90 percent of these guys won’t get that opportunity again,” explained Fourie during a Stormers press conference on Monday. “If you don’t get into the Springbok setup you will never face the haka or play against the All Blacks. So what a massive occasion and I think 50 years on (since the last time the Stormers faced the All Blacks during a tour), we get that opportunity again as a union to play against a Test side.” Over the past couple of years Fourie has picked up ACL, fractured tibia and torn bicep injuries, and most recently in the URC against Ulster earlier this year suffered a medial ligament tear after a dangerous croc-roll that required surgery. ‘I am ready’ “I am ready (to play). It’s been about 10 or 11 weeks since the operation. Fitness wise I will only be able to tell you if I play on Friday how that is. But I am definitely ready to go and I have been looking forward to this match since it was announced a year or two ago,” said Fourie. Fourie’s one appearance against the All Blacks to date came in the 2023 World Cup final, when he was thrown into the deep end at hooker in just the third minute of the match after Bongi Mbonambi went off injured. “I can’t really remember much about those 77 minutes, they went past so quickly. But it is a great memory,” said Fourie. “You always hope you can play them again. The last two years I have had bad luck with injuries so I didn’t know if I would still be able to play this year. But fortunately everything went well and I get an opportunity again to face the haka.” Stormers forwards coach Rito Hlungwani elaborated on the enormity of the occasion, calling it a “once in a lifetime experience”. “What a massive opportunity for our players, coaches and for Stormers rugby. This is something we are really excited about and something we are really looking forward to. We feel like it’s one of those once in a lifetime experiences that might never come back again,” said Hlungwani.

The All Blacks Greatest Rivalry tour of South Africa gets under way this week, with the tourists’ first match taking place in Cape Town on Friday when they clash with the Stormers. The New Zealanders will also take on the three other SA United Rugby Championship sides, the Lions, Sharks and Bulls. They will also face the world champions, the Springboks, in four Tests. Those matches take place at Ellis Park, Cape Town Stadium, FNB Stadium and in Baltimore, USA. According to Rapport, ticket sales for the four provincial matches have been slow. “Sales range from modest to poor, so ‘sold out’ signs won’t be going up anytime soon,” Rapport quoted an SA Rugby spokesperson as saying. “We hope things pick up, but it has been a struggle so far.” Tickets for Friday’s clash against the Stormers at Cape Town Stadium are priced between R650 and R1,350. The All Blacks take on the Sharks in Durban on 11 August, the Bulls in Pretoria on 15 August and the Lions at Ellis Park on 25 August. It is understood tickets for the first two Tests, at Ellis Park and Cape Town Stadium, are sold out. There are, however, still tickets available for the third Test at FNB Stadium, ranging from R1,650 to R4,000. There are also still limited tickets available for the fourth Test at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore. For tickets click here.

The Lions lead the way after three rounds of this season’s Currie Cup Premier Division, while the Bulls bring up the rear after failing to pick up a win up to now. After recording their second win from three matches in the competition, against the Bulls in Joburg on Saturday (42-19) the Lions are top of the log with 12 points. The Bulls, after losses to the Boland, Griquas and Lions, are bottom of the log with one point collected. It is a close affair in the top part of the standings with just a few points separating the top teams. In second place are Griquas, with 11 points, followed by the Cheetahs, who’ve also got 11, and in fourth are Boland, with 10 points. Griquas beat the Cheetahs 24-21 in round three, while Boland went down for the first time in three outings at home in Wellington on Sunday. They were pipped 20-15 by a desperate Pumas side who had lost their first two games. The Pumas now have seven points and are sixth, just off the Stormers (fifth), who have nine points after their 36-28 win against the Sharks. The men from Durban are seventh with six points. Pumas back in the hunt Pumas captain Willie Engelbrecht was understandably a happy man after his team’s hard-fought win in Wellington on Sunday. “It’s always hard to come here and win,” said the loose forward. “We asked the guys to show some dog and they all put up a fight. I’m glad we’re back on track.” Man of the match Nevaldo Fleurs added: “I need to give a shout out to every one of our guys. They all fought hard, in every department and contest.” Boland, who had knocked over the Bulls and the Stormers in emphatic fashion in their first two matches, will have to go back to the proverbial drawing board. “We’re gutted,” said skipper Thurlow Marsh. “It hurts. We’ll all feel it. We’re not used to this. We now go on the road and will simply have to get as many wins as we can. We’re going to have to work hard.” In round four this weekend, on Saturday, Griquas welcome the Lions, the Bulls entertain the Pumas, and the Sharks take on Boland, and on Sunday, the Stormers will host the Cheetahs. For all the results, fixtures and log standings click here.

Expect Siya Kolisi, Eben Etzebeth, Lood de Jager, Morne van den Berg and Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu to be included in the Springboks’ starting XV for Saturday’s one-off Test against Argentina in Buenos Aires, but the big question is, who’ll start at No 8 and in midfield? With first choice eighthman Jasper Wiese remaining in Joburg, with a bunch of other senior players, to start preparations for the Test series against the All Blacks, there’s a vacancy at the back of the scrum. Also, first-choice centres Damian de Allende and Jesse Kriel have remained in Joburg, so who’ll wear the No 12 and 13 jerseys this Saturday? Eighthman and midfield picks Cameron Hanekom is the obvious pick to take over from Wiese in Saturday’s match, but then Marco van Staden and Elrigh Louw can also play at the back of the scrum. Even Kolisi has played there before. And on Sunday, Rapport suggested versatile hybrid player Ander Esterhuizen could even pack down at eighthman, if he is fully fit and available for selection. In the midfield, Esterhuizen could play 12 with either Canan Moodie or Ethan Hooker at 13, or Handre Pollard could slot in at 12 with Esterhuizen at 13, leaving Moodie and Hooker to play on the wings. But then, where would Edwill van der Merwe fit in? Coach Rassie Erasmus has many options, even though he has travelled to Argentina with a squad of just 26 players, including the previously sidelined Kolisi, Etzebeth, De Jager and Co. He is expected to name his team for Saturday’s match on Monday or Tuesday. Assistant coaches in SA “We tried to get the balance right between giving some guys who are returning from injury and who have not had too much game time in our last four matches a valuable run against Argentina, while at the same time managing the players who have played a lot of rugby this year,” said Erasmus. “The guys who have recovered from their injuries have been training hard and are ready to go, so it will be great for them to get a tough Test match under the belt before we face New Zealand.” The only two current squad players who aren’t able to train and play are Ox Nche and Franco Mostert. While Erasmus is in charge of the 26-man group in Argentina this week, the remaining squad players will continue their training in Joburg under the watchful eyes of Tony Brown and Duane Vermeulen, who did not travel to Buenos Aires. “Argentina are a quality outfit and we know we will be in for a massive challenge in Buenos Aires, so we are preparing for a physical and gruelling battle over there,” said Erasmus. “They are a well-coached team, who have tested us in the last few years.” The match on Saturday kicks off at 9pm.

Flyhalf Nevaldo Fleurs’ 15-point haul propelled the Pumas past the Boland Cavaliers in Wellington in a round three Currie Cup game on Sunday. The Pumas won 20-15, having led 10-5 at the break, with their first victory of the campaign lifting them to sixth on the log. Boland, meanwhile, end round three in fourth position. Fleurs opened the scoring for the Pumas with a penalty goal, before Boland flank Kwanda Dimaza was yellow-carded for a shoulder-to-head tackle. But it didn’t prevent the Cavaliers from scoring the first try of the match, winger Xavier Mitchell collecting a well-executed cross-kick. The Pumas hit back on the half-hour mark when scrumhalf Thomas Bursey kicked a box kick and then regained possession. The hosts then copped another yellow card just before the break, fullback James Tedder penalised for a high tackle. The Pumas took advantage early in the second half when Fleurs scored under the posts and added the extras. Boland responded with a maul try to tighthead prop Dayan van der Westhuizen and Tedder’s conversion reduced the deficit to five. Pumas lock JJ Scheepers was sin-binned for a deliberate knock-on but Boland failed to add to their tally while he was off the field while Fleurs kicked a second penalty goal. Winger Jayden Bantom’s late penalty brought Boland back into striking range, but the Pumas hung on for the win. In round four, Boland travel to Durban to take on the Sharks XV, while the Pumas face the Bulls XV at Loftus. BOLAND CAVALIERS – Tries: Xavier Mitchell, Dayan van der Westhuizen. Conversion: James Tedder. Penalty: Jayden Bantom.PUMAS – Tries: Nevaldo Fleurs, Thomas Bursey. Conversions: Fleurs (2). Penalty: Nevaldo Fleurs (2). This story first appeared on sarugbymag.co.za. It is republished here with permission.

A former Springbok flyhalf is in line to become the Bulls’ new kicking coach. According to Rapport, Vlok Cilliers is the frontrunner to join Johan Ackermann’s coaching staff. The 58-year-old recently returned to South Africa after his stint as France’s kicking coach came to an early end. While Cilliers is still finalising his severance package with the French Rugby Federation, Rapport says the talks are not expected to prevent a move to Loftus Versfeld. Cillier, who earned one cap off the bench for the Boks in the first Test of the 1996 All Blacks series, became South Africa’s first full-time kicking coach during the Bulls’ most successful era under Heyneke Meyer. Working with the likes of Derick Hougaard and Morné Steyn, he helped the Bulls win three Super Rugby titles and three Currie Cup crowns between 2004 and 2014. After leaving Loftus, Cilliers joined the Stormers before linking up with Fabien Galthié’s France coaching team in 2019. Rapport that recently retired flyhalf Johan Goosen, who has been involved with Bulls’ U23 and Currie Cup teams this year, has also been mentioned as a possible candidate. This story was first published on sarugbymag.co.za. It is republished here with permission.

Rassie Erasmus has revealed that veteran Springbok prop Frans Malherbe could make a return to action early next year. The double World Cup winner is recovering from a chronic back and neck injury, compounded by a hip issue, and has not played since the Stormers’ Vodacom URC clash against the Scarlets in March 2025. His contract expired at the end of last season and hasn’t been renewed. Erasmus, who in March said the 35-year-old has considered retiring, discussed Malherbe’s future in a press conference this week. “What I know is it was a back injury and as far as I understand, when I talk to him, he’s trying his best to return,” the Bok head coach said. “For me it sounds like January is a good date for him to try and come back. I might get proven wrong, or a doctor might phone me later and say you’re totally wrong. “But as far as I understand, Frans is going to try and play in January, and I hope that works out.” Stormers director of rugby John Dobson told SARugbymag.co.za that Malherbe is still training with the team but hasn’t done any heavy contact or scrumming. Dobson cannot confirm when and if the 76-Test tighthead plays again, as the decision remains his own This story was first published on sarugbymag.co.za. It is republished here with permission.