Rugby Championship 2023

In RWC years this obviously becomes no more than warm up and preparation stuff for each countries RWC hopes, but fascinating all the same. Eddie's first match in charge of Australia away in SA.

SPRINGBOKS: 15. Willie le Roux 14. Canan Moodie 13. Lukhanyo Am 12. Andre Esterhuizen 11. Kurt-Lee Arendse 10. Manie Libbok 9. Cobus Reinach 8. Duane Vermeulen (c) 7. Pieter-Steph du Toit 6. Marco van Staden 5. Marvin Orie 4. Jean Kleyn 3. Frans Malherbe 2. Bongi Mbonambi 1. Ox Nche.

RESERVES: 16. Joseph Dweba 17. Thomas du Toit 18. Vincent Koch 19. RG Snyman 20. Evan Roos 21. Deon Fourie 22. Grant Williams 23. Damian Willemse.

WALLABIES: 15. Tom Wright 14. Suliasi Vunivalu 13. Len Ikitau 12. Reece Hodge 11. Marika Koroibete 10. Quade Cooper 9. Nic White 8. Rob Valetini 7. Michael Hooper (c) 6. Tom Hooper 5. Nick Frost 4. Will Skelton 3. Allan Alaalatoa 2. Dave Porecki 1. James Slipper (c)/Matt Gibbon.

RESERVES: 16. Jordan Uelese 17. Matt Gibbon/ Blake Schoupp 18. Zane Nonggor 19. Richie Arnold 20. Pete Samu 21. Tate McDermott 22. Carter Gordon 23. Samu Kerevi.

Sunday, July 9, 1.05am AEST, Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria

Four players are in line to make Test debuts while Wallabies co-captain James Slipper has overcome a knee injury to be named for Australia's Rugby Championship opener against South Africa.The Wallabies are looking for a first-ever win in Pretoria on Sunday morning (AEST) with Eddie Jones in charge for his first Test since returning as coach.Tom Hooper, 22, will earn his first cap after being named as blindside flanker while there are three possible debutants on the bench in five-eighth Carter Gordon, lock Richie Arnold and 21-year-old prop Zane Nonggorr, with Taniela Tupou requiring more training minutes after his Achilles injury.Brumbies utility forward Hooper will line up alongside co-captain Michael Hooper (no relation) with No.8 Rob Valetini rounding out the back row.Slipper was in doubt after a training mishap but will make his 128th Test appearance alongside Waratahs hooker David Porecki with Brumbies skipper Allan Alaalatoa at tighthead prop.Nick Frost and France-based Will Skelton are the starting locks.

Nic White will reunite with Quade Cooper in the halves while star inside centre Samu Kerevi will return from a hamstring issue via the bench, leaving Reece Hodge to combine in the midfield with Len Ikitau.

Former NRL star Suliasi Vunivalu will make his first Test start on the right wing, with Marika Koroibete on the left edge and Tom Wright at fullback.

Jones said the Wallabies' preparation for the Loftus Versfeld clash had been first rate.

'As a squad, the players have worked extremely hard since coming together as a group and we've prepared well this week,' he said.

'The 23 players selected have an opportunity to be part of history with a win over South Africa in Pretoria on Saturday night.'

Meanwhile, No. 8 Duane Vermeulen will captain world champion South Africa in its opening test of the Rugby World Cup year against Australia on Saturday and Manie Libbok will make his first start at flyhalf.

Vermeulen stands in for regular captain Siya Kolisi, who is recovering from knee surgery and an injury doubt for the Springboks' World Cup title defense in France that starts in September.

Coach Jacques Nienaber also gave a South Africa test debut to lock Jean Kleyn in the team announced on Tuesday. Kleyn is a South Africa-born former Ireland international who was recently cleared to play for the Springboks.

While Vermeulen leads South Africa in its opening game of a shortened southern hemisphere Rugby Championship, the Springboks will send a separate group of players containing a host of 2019 Rugby World Cup winners to New Zealand to prepare for a test against the All Blacks on July 15.

That group misses the Wallabies game to focus on New Zealand and contains the likes of hooker Malcolm Marx, locks Eben Etzebeth and Lood de Jager and backline players Faf de Klerk, Cheslin Kolbe, Makazole Mapimpi and Damian de Allende, all World Cup winners.

Kolisi, who had surgery on his right knee in late April and is in a race to be fit for the World Cup, is also with the group that will travel this week to New Zealand, the Springboks said.

'Our plan from the outset was to select a squad that we believe has what it takes to beat Australia while at the same time selecting a group of players that could travel to New Zealand to give us the best possible chance to do well in both matches,' Nienaber said.

Vermeulen captains South Africa for the third time and first since 2019. Libbok will also be the focus of attention given South Africa's injury problems at flyhalf.

Regular No. 10 Handre Pollard is out while stand-in Damian Willemse has only recently recovered from injury and is on the bench against Australia in Pretoria on Saturday.

Like Libbok, flanker Marco van Steden is set to make his first start after having previously appeared for South Africa off the bench.

Prop Ox Nche was named in the team but later sustained a chest injury at training on Tuesday and was a doubt for the game. Steven Kitshoff would remain behind in South Africa as cover instead of traveling with that group of players to New Zealand, the Springboks said.

I think only once has the reigning rugby championship winners won the RWC however, Im sure all four sides will want to win it. Two tough games to call because I feel like Australia and Argentina have big games in them. Australia seem to do well v SA and Argentina while they have never beat NZ in Argentina they have recently won v NZ in NZ and in Sydney. I feel like they will be desperate to get the win at home and they definitely have the players to do so. They might miss Kramer though who I believe is suspended.

Two great games potentially!!

hugehandoff wrote:While Vermeulen leads South Africa in its opening game of a shortened southern hemisphere Rugby Championship, the Springboks will send a separate group of players containing a host of 2019 Rugby World Cup winners to New Zealand to prepare for a test against the All Blacks on July 15.

That group misses the Wallabies game to focus on New Zealand and contains the likes of hooker Malcolm Marx, locks Eben Etzebeth and Lood de Jager and backline players Faf de Klerk, Cheslin Kolbe, Makazole Mapimpi and Damian de Allende, all World Cup winners.

It seems the Boks are playing different teams against the Wallabies and the ABs.  Good way to challenge the broader squad in front of the RWC,  And also limit the number of people who have to make the long trip.

Unreal stat, beating the all blacks twice but neither of those occasions at home. I think Arg and Aus are ‘dark horses’ come World Cup time.

Go on Gonzo Bertranou

Nice to see Risca has his love interest. Warms the heart.

For me, the forecast today is 86°F (30°C en Francais) and humid as boll0cks with the attendant summer thunderstorms. I haven't cut my lawn in about 2 weeks because it has been hot and raining almost every day. So now my lawn looks as messy as Lewis Ludlum's hair after a match (said with respect). So I have to do it, but the Rugby Championship is on, one game at 11am the other at 3pm. How do I sell this at home that I have priorities???? And I have to go make hospital rounds in a few.

Well decent start to the Sa game. Liking how nz are li I guess up at 10 and 15 too.

Libbock having an up and down game.

Just got back in time to watch the second half. However, since I have been watching not one glimpse of Eddie Jones. And the Boks seem a bit stronger and a step quicker.

Better than the ashes, that’s what Eddie said beforehand.

What a beat down! Just slow continuous grinding down of the Wallabies.

SA in complete control for most of that. A few standout performances from the front-row, Vermeulen, Reinach and Esterhuizen.

Kicking from aus was abysmal.

André Esterhuizen was enormous.  17 or 18 tough guy carries.  And still humourous and gracious in the post-match interviews.  

The Boks played very well with ball in hand, not just the familiar kick-chase-territory game (ahem, England).  In the post-match interviews many of the players and commentators mentioned how the Boks are trying to evolve their game (ahem, England).  JdV actually joked he thought they almost started playing with the ball too much!  

JdV was fun playing off Nick Mallett.  Schalk Burger and Breyton Paulse almost seemed like The Odd Couple.  I don't know the woman who actually led the broadcast, but she is a thorough professional, having a bit o fun but keeping things moving.

mikey_dragon wrote:Better than the ashes, that’s what Eddie said beforehand.

He also said "What I am hoping for is their best team. I do not want to take down a half-baked Springboks side,"

Couldnt even compete with their B team. Jones should keep his gob shut really.

Yeah, but we all knew that about EJ from his time in the 6N.

Really feels like the Argies are getting a raw deal with the ref, deja vue.

Every marginal call goes to NZ.

Not sure about raw deal, they look hopeless, and are very indisciplined as usual. All Blacks suddenly looking very good in world cup year.

Yeah, this is a drubbing. Feels different than the Springbok-Wallaby game though.

Ooft that's a chastening Wallabies defeat. Sounds like they weren't competitive and we're blown away physically. Eddie's got his work cut out!

RDW wrote:Ooft that's a chastening Wallabies defeat. Sounds like they weren't competitive and we're blown away physically. Eddie's got his work cut out!

And that wasn't the full Springbok squad. Eddie said in the post-match that the Boks pretty much prevented the Wallabies from getting into their game.

I reckon England will be more and more relieved that they parted ways with Jones as the lead up to the world cup progresses. I can see Australia going backwards under Jones whereas England at least have a chance of progress under Borthwick.

Jones is by far the better coach. It was the right time, or in truth perhaps a little late to get rid of Jones, but not to swap him with Borthwick.

Collapse2005 wrote:I reckon England will be more and more relieved that they parted ways with Jones as the lead up to the world cup progresses. I can see Australia going backwards under Jones whereas England at least have a chance of progress under Borthwick.

Jones is like the Mourinho of rugby. Has had some success but also a lot of failure having somehow made a truckload of money in doing so!

Jones definitely seems to have a cult following the sort who seem to no matter what odd things Jones does assume there is some sort of genius calculated reason for it. There very often isnt though.

Everything anyone does has a reason, you don't need to be part of a cult to realise that. Some people are just annoyed by him so can't view things objectively.

No 7&1/2 wrote:Everything anyone does has a reason, you don't need to be part of a cult to realise that. Some people are just annoyed by him so can't view things objectively.

Quite. Jones makes mistakes, like everyone - his starting lineup for the 2019 RWC Final is a good example. But he’s also much less likely than other coaches to persist with something just because it worked last time. His turnover of assistant coaches and willingness to drop players is partly a function of that. He’s got some very specific habits around what he changes and when, and he is generally focused on preparing his team for the RWC tournament ahead of anything else - and has come unstuck several times putting that ahead of preparation for the immediate competition in front of him.

I do find it a bit odd that people are so willing to claim he doesn’t know what he’s doing. He’s clearer on what he’s trying to achieve than most coaches - but whether a) he tells the media and fans or b) he can communicate that effectively to his players is a completely different set of questions.

2 stats I've seen on the sa aus match. Sa made 66 tackles in the match. Koroibete was the only Australian to make more carries than tackles in the match.

Eben Etzebeth's father passed away through the night whilst he was in NZ. It hasn't been confirmed if he'll miss the weekend's match versus the All Blacks.

Poor guy

So sad.

I didn't know at the time but Etzebeth had requested he receive his 100th cap (versus Wales) at Cape Town as his father was too ill to travel further afield - he must have been on 98 caps at before the series? I can't quite remember. No further news yet but I think he might play. SA have put out quite some team. AB's have gone with the big men up front too. There's a clear top 4 in world rugby and I can't see anyone else outside that threatening the world cup.

mikey_dragon wrote:I didn't know at the time but Etzebeth had requested he receive his 100th cap (versus Wales) at Cape Town as his father was too ill to travel further afield - he must have been on 98 caps at before the series? I can't quite remember. No further news yet but I think he might play. SA have put out quite some team. AB's have gone with the big men up front too. There's a clear top 4 in world rugby and I can't see anyone else outside that threatening the world cup.

That's what they want you to believe....

mikey_dragon wrote:There's a clear top 4 in world rugby and I can't see anyone else outside that threatening the world cup.

I can.

The problem with that thinking is that those top 4, assuming you mean Ireland, France, South Africa and New Zealand, are all drawn in Pools A & B, which means that only 2 of them can make the semi-final, and to get there they have to play 2 of the other 3 and beat at least one of them.

Meanwhile, the most likely teams to emerge from Pools C and D are Wales, Australia, England and Argentina, and two of them are guaranteed to make the semi-finals.

In a knock-out game, any one of those could beat any of the other four, especially if they’ve had a bruising journey thus far. It’s still likely that one of those 4 will lift the trophy - but I’d say that there’s at least a 40% chance that one of the finalists comes from the other half of the draw. England, Wales and Australia all have newly installed coaches (if not completely new ones in the case of the latter two) and an RWC camp to prepare. Things will have to go right for them but a lucky bounce or a high tackle could swing the result in their favour.

Poorfour, yes I had those 4 in mind. I also wasn't sure how it would pan out so thanks for that. I have a feeling Aus or Arg could be the 'dark horses', but their form right now is making me think again. Wales need to do something special if we're aiming to top the group, nothing like a couple games against England and one against SA for a warm-up.

Should be very interesting!

All Blacks: Beauden Barrett, Will Jordan, Rieko Ioane, Jordie Barrett, Mark Telea, Richie Mo’unga, Aaron Smith, Ardie Savea, Sam Cane (capt), Shannon Frizell, Scott Barrett, Brodie Retallick, Tyrel Lomax, Codie Taylor, Ethan de Groot. Reserves: Samisoni Taukei’aho, Tamaiti Williams, Nepo Laulala, Tupou Vaa’i, Dalton Papali’i, Finlay Christie, Braydon Ennor, Caleb Clarke.

Springboks: Willie le Roux, Cheslin Kolbe, Lukhanyo Am, Damian de Allende, Makazole Mapimpi, Damian Willemse, Faf de Klerk, Jasper Wiese, Franco Mostert, Kwagga Smith, Lood de Jager, Eben Etzebeth (capt), Frans Malherbe, Bongi Mbonambi, Steven Kitshoff. Reserves: Malcolm Marx, Thomas du Toit, Vincent Koch, RG Snyman, Pieter Steph du Toit, Duane Vermeulen, Grant Williams, Manie Libbok

and these 2 teams both need to bounce back after last weekend

Wallabies (15-1): Tom Wright; Mark Nawaqanitawase, Len Ikitau, Samu Kerevi; Marika Koroibete, Quade Cooper, Nic White; Rob Valetini, Fraser McReight, Jed Holloway; Will Skelton, Richie Arnold; Allan Alaalatoa, David Porecki, James Slipper (c)

Replacements: Jordan Uelese, Angus Bell, Pone Fa'amausili, Matt Philip, Rob Leota, Josh Kemeny, Tate McDermott, Carter Gordon



Argentina (15-1): Emiliano Boffelli; Rodrigo Isgro, Lucio Cinti, Jeronimo De La Fuente; Mateo Carreras, Santiago Carreras, Gonzalo Bertranou; Juan Martin Gonzalez, Santiago Grondona, Pablo Matera; Tomas Lavanini, Matias Alemanno; Francisco Gomez Kodela, Julian Montoya (capt), Thomas Gallo

Replacements: Agustin Creevy, Hahuel Tetaz Chaparro, Eduardo Bello, Lucas Paulos, Rodrigo Bruni, Lautaro Bazan Velez, Nicolas Sanchez, Matias Moroni

1 way traffic.

NZ looking like world beaters - can they keep it up?

Looks like SA try for me from Kolbe

Then Barrett drops the ball.

SA been really poor.

ABs have been really impressive

Masterful performance from Mo'unga!

ABs opening 15 minutes were awesome. The intensity was bound to drop after that, but they finished well to round off a very impressive victory over a full strength SA. Great preparation for both teams. Will Jordan is a real point of difference.

ABs looking resurgent ahead of the world cup. Ominous from them so far.

hugehandoff wrote:ABs opening 15 minutes were awesome. The intensity was bound to drop after that, but they finished well to round off a very impressive victory over a full strength SA. Great preparation for both teams. Will Jordan is a real point of difference.

Got to wonder how big a loss Pollard is for SA. His form at the tail end of the season for Tigers was excellent, have SA got another flyhalf who can mix controlling pragmatism with attack when it's on like he can?

formerly known as Sam wrote:

hugehandoff wrote:ABs opening 15 minutes were awesome. The intensity was bound to drop after that, but they finished well to round off a very impressive victory over a full strength SA. Great preparation for both teams. Will Jordan is a real point of difference.

Got to wonder how big a loss Pollard is for SA. His form at the tail end of the season for Tigers was excellent, have SA got another flyhalf who can mix controlling pragmatism with attack when it's on like he can?

It's remarkable how poor SA's options are at 10. Got to wonder how good they would be if they had a proper one!

Libbock is a classy player.

Good crowd for Aus Arg.
Good to see Nawaqanitawse back. Exciting player to watch.

Good to know Marius Jonker wants to re-referee the entire game.