Springboks Pick Experienced Squad For Wallabies Rugby Championship Opener<\/a><\/p>\nAnchored by world-class enforcers like Eben Etzebeth and Malcolm Marx, they grind teams down through relentless set-piece pressure, then double down with a second wave of fresh, equally monstrous forwards from the bench the so-called \u201cBomb Squad.\u201d This sustained physical onslaught is paired with a backline stacked with ultra-versatile players, many capable of covering multiple positions without losing attacking sharpness or defensive bite. It\u2019s a combination that allows the Springboks to dictate the tempo, suffocate possession, and pounce when gaps appear. In the Rugby Championship, if South Africa gets its scrum firing, few opponents can survive the full 80 without bending or breaking.<\/p>\n
Biggest Weakness \u2013 The Blitz<\/p>\n
Technically, the Springboks are world-class in just about every department. One area that at times has been exposed by teams, most notably Ireland, has been their heralded blitz defence. When teams front up and create forward momentum through the heart of this defence, they can often have joy in the wider channels. On the whole, however, to truly exploit this system, teams need to be relentless in finding those gaps in close around the breakdown.<\/p>\n
In addition to physically fronting up, sides such as Ireland and the All Blacks have cleverly exposed the blitz with well-placed short and intermediate kicks. Exposing gaps in the Bok\u2019s backfield and targeting their undersized wingers.<\/p>\n
On the whole, whilst the blitz is arguably one of the Boks\u2019 biggest strengths on one hand, it has proven to be their undoing at times.<\/p>\n
The Story So Far<\/p>\n
South Africa boasts one of the most storied records in the competition. Across 135 matches, they\u2019ve recorded 61 wins, 5 draws, and 69 losses, with a fairly balanced points differential of -97. In terms of silverware, they\u2019ve lifted the title five times, three during the Tri Nations era (1998, 2004, 2009) and twice in the modern Rugby Championship (2019, 2024).<\/p>\n
The Springboks have claimed the Freedom Cup three times and the Mandela Challenge Plate eight times. They\u2019ve struggled with consistency in recent years, finishing last 11 times, but they\u2019ve never been far from the top.<\/p>\n
Defensively, they\u2019re perennially one of the toughest teams to break down. Offensively, they\u2019ve evolved to match modern demands, with players like Handr\u00e9 Pollard and Bryan Habana among the competition\u2019s top all-time scorers.<\/p>\n
2024\u2019s title-winning campaign reaffirmed their credentials as a world-class side. As defending champions, they enter 2025 with a target on their back\u2014but also with the experience and tools to go back-to-back.<\/p>\n
Tournament Prediction \u2013 First<\/p>\n
Eden Park and Wellington Regional Stadium are the two stadiums that will decide the 2025 Rugby Championship. For the Boks to retain their title for the first time in their long history, beating the All Blacks in their backyard is non-negotiable.<\/p>\n
Given the Kiwis\u2019 record at Eden Park, a venue they have not lost at since 1994, you can bet your bottom dollar that Rassie and his charges will have that fixture circled as their next great achievement.<\/p>\n
Whilst on paper the Wellington fixture is the \u2018easier\u2019 of the two matches, the Boks are out to make history in 2025 and breaking the All Blacks’ final stronghold of invincibility is where they will do it. This win will set up a head-to-head shootout in the final two rounds, and the Boks will back themselves to beat Los Pumas, whilst the All Blacks face a resurgent Wallabies team.<\/p>\n
Springbok Rugby Championship Fixtures<\/p>\n
Aug. 16: 11:10 a.m. ET: South Africa vs. Australia<\/p>\n
Aug. 23: 11:10 a.m. ET: South Africa vs. Australia<\/p>\n
Sept. 6: 3:05 a.m. ET: New Zealand All Blacks vs. South Africa<\/p>\n
Sept. 13: 3:05 a.m. ET: New Zealand All Blacks vs. South Africa<\/p>\n
Sept. 27: 11:10 a.m. ET: South Africa vs. Argentina<\/p>\n
Oct. 4: 9:00 a.m. ET: Argentina vs. South Africa<\/p>\n
How To Watch Rugby Matches In The United States On FloRugby<\/p>\n
The URC will stream all its matches on FloRugby and the FloSports app in the United States. FloRugby and FloSports also are the U.S. home to:\u00a0<\/p>\n
FloRugby also is home to match archives and match replays.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Join The Rugby Conversation On FloRugby Social<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Fresh off their 2024 Rugby Championship title, South Africa head into 2025 with wind in their sails and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":63246,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[567],"tags":[64,63,760,85],"class_list":["post-63245","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-rugby","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-rugby","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63245","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=63245"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63245\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/63246"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=63245"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=63245"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=63245"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}