Former Springboks Schalk Burger, Hanyani Shimange, and Jean de Villiers have weighed in on the prospect of a tiebreaker to decide the Greatest Rivalry series.<\/p>\n
The Boks and All Blacks<\/a> will face off in four Tests, thrice in South Africa<\/a> and once in Baltimore, later this year in the inaugural tour between the two rivals.<\/p>\n Springboks-All Blacks series won\u2019t end in a stalemate<\/p>\n The even number of games means that there is a real prospect of the Test series<\/a> ending in a stalemate, like the 2017 British and Irish Lions Series in New Zealand. A draw is something that neither nation wants, according to SA Rugby\u2019s general manager of operations, Yusuf Jackson.<\/p>\n \u201cThere will be a tiebreaker in the event the series is drawn, and there will be an ultimate winner,\u201d he told SARugbymag.co.za.<\/p>\n \u201cThe question we asked both teams was, \u2018Are we happy to shake hands in Baltimore and share the trophy?\u2019 Both were aligned. \u2018No, we want a winner\u2019\u201d, he added.<\/p>\n It has yet to be confirmed what kind of tiebreaker will be put in place to decide the series if they cannot be split in Baltimore, with Jackson stating that they are still \u2018exploring\u2019 options, whether that is extra-time or sudden death.<\/p>\n \u2018Everyone agrees that we want a winner\u2019 \u2013 SA Rugby official reveals what will happen if Greatest Rivalry series is drawn<\/a><\/p>\n Prospect of a penalty shootout?<\/p>\n The trio of former Springboks discussed the prospect of a tiebreaker on the Boks Unpacked podcast with Shimange stating that \u201cIt would be the greatest tour of all time if it gets down to two all.\u201d<\/p>\n However, Burger was wary of what would happen if they still could not be split after extra time, as he didn\u2019t want the series to be decided by a kicking competition.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u00a0thought these tours just end in a drawn series, doesn\u2019t it? Like they\u2019re going to have a tiebreaker, like a goal kick-off,\u201d he questioned with De Villiers interjecting saying, \u201cPlease no.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI tell you what, if it comes to a kickoff, we might have more kickers than them,\u201d Buger continued. \u201cBut surely it shouldn\u2019t be coming down to one of those.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve actually got no idea, guys, but let\u2019s see. Hopefully, they clarify that with us if there\u2019s extra time.\u201d<\/p>\n Sir Steve Hansen: The All Blacks looked like they didn\u2019t have \u2018any idea\u2019 how to play against the Springboks<\/a><\/p>\n There have been precious few examples of kicking competitions to decide the outcome of matches in the past, but perhaps the most famous one was the 2009 Heineken Cup semi-final between the Cardiff Blues and Leicester Tigers.<\/p>\n That was the match that immediately sprang to mind for De Villiers, who hoped that Rugby\u2019s Greatest Rivalry Series didn\u2019t come down to that.<\/p>\n \u201cIt can\u2019t be anything other than extra time because I\u2019ve immediately thought of that semi-final Heineken Cup, Cardiff Blues v Leicester Tigers, and it came down to Martin Williams missing a kick from right in front,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s not a skill set that a flanker is meant to have to get a victory, now it comes down to that. So if they do get something like that, it must come down to the two teams playing more time and then getting a winner.\u201d<\/p>\n