“While their initial momentum was bolstered by three warm-up fixtures against local SA franchises, the tactical and psychological evidence still points to a New Zealand upper hand.
“If any team excels at channelling a loss into ruthless execution, it is New Zealand. Expect the wounded All Blacks to enter FNB Stadium licking their lips at the prospect of silencing the South African crowd once again.”
‘A 50% chance of getting it right’
Nick Mallett, Talking Boks
“What they do now is they don’t want to stay up because if they collapse [the scrum], they force the referee to make a decision between one or the other side. So you have a 50% chance of getting it right, of actually getting a penalty.
“Whereas the referees should be good enough to see who is actually pancaking, who’s going down.
“So this Saturday, we’re going to come as hard as we can in the scrums, and hopefully we’re going to get better reward for our dominance in that area of the game.”
‘Influence the matchday referees’
Jon Cardinelli, Daily Maverick
“Since the start of the Greatest Rivalry tour, the All Blacks management as well as the travelling media have accused the Boks of slowing the game down to prevent opponents – like New Zealand – from employing a faster, more expansive approach.
“The latter is a particularly bizarre claim, given that Rassie Erasmus’s charges have dominated this set piece in recent seasons and have forced as many as seven scrum penalties over the course of the current test series.
“It doesn’t take a genius to see how Rennie and company are attempting to influence the matchday referees and negate South Africa’s strengths in the remaining tests.”
‘Negating the scrum’
Brenden Nel, SuperSport
“The All Blacks got away with negating the scrum in the second test, helped by a referee who didn’t want scrum penalties to be anywhere near his whistle. By the second half, they were simply feeding the ball under the lock’s feet and they got away with it.”
‘Ultimate sign of a team feeling the squeeze’
John Goliah, IOL
“In Cape Town, when the rugby failed them, the All Blacks turned to cynicism. Spearheaded by the likes of Fabian Holland and Luke Jacobson, New Zealand’s approach turned noticeably grubby. Late hits off the ball, cynical clearouts from the side, and off-the-ball niggles were deployed to disrupt the Boks’ momentum.
“Gone is the ruthless, clinical precision of the All Blacks of old; in its place is a side resorting to cheap shots when the kitchen gets too hot.
“This cheap-shot mentality is the ultimate sign of a team feeling the squeeze. Going into the series, they knew they had to win the first two matches because South Africa’s superior depth would start to come into its own in tests three and four.
“Rennie and his squad have made their bed of excuses. Now, it is time for Siya Kolisi and Erasmus’s Springboks to do what they do best: inflict a physical beating so absolute that no amount of post-match whingeing can disguise it.
“It is time to shut Rennie and the All Blacks up – hard.”
‘We desperately want to win’
South African coach Rassie Erasmus
“This is a very important series that we desperately want to win. We lost the first game, won the second, and we thought continuity would be the best thing for one of the most important games in the series,” Erasmus told media this week.
“We can’t win [the series] this Saturday, but we can make sure that we won’t lose it, as the last test would then be for either a draw or [outright series] win. So, we just feel this is the best team to achieve our goal this weekend.
“This is our last match on South African soil for 2026. We would love to give our supporters a victory.”
Listen to Elliott Smith’s live commentary on Newstalk ZB Sport and iHeartRadio, or join the Alternative Commentary Collective on iHeartRadio and Radio Hauraki.
