Springboks and All Blacks Open Four-Test Series at Ellis Park
South Africa and New Zealand meet at Ellis Park in Johannesburg on Saturday in the opening Test of a four-match series, the centrepiece of the first full All Blacks tour of South Africa in 30 years.
The series, branded Rugby's Greatest Rivalry, replaces the Rugby Championship on the southern hemisphere calendar this year. The traditional four-team competition featuring Australia and Argentina returns in 2027. Three of the four Tests will be played in South Africa, at Ellis Park on 22 August, Cape Town Stadium on 29 August and FNB Stadium in Johannesburg on 5 September, before the series concludes at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore on 12 September.
The tour also includes four matches against South African United Rugby Championship franchises. New Zealand have already beaten the Stormers, Sharks and Bulls, and will face the Lions at Ellis Park on 25 August.
A trophy has been created specifically for the series, made in two halves held together by magnets. The winner receives both halves after the final Test in Baltimore. If the series is drawn, each nation keeps one half.
Team News
South Africa will be captained by Pieter-Steph du Toit from openside flanker, with Paul de Villiers starting at six. Siya Kolisi, who suffered an injury in the win over Argentina in Buenos Aires earlier this month, trained well and was available, but the selectors have taken a cautious approach and left him out of the starting side.
Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu starts at flyhalf, having made only one appearance since a lengthy injury layoff. Damian de Allende will win his 100th Test cap, becoming the 10th player to reach the milestone for South Africa.
For New Zealand, captain Ardie Savea, scrumhalf Cam Roigard and winger Will Jordan all make their first appearances of the tour. The squad also called up flyhalf Richie Mo'unga as an injury replacement for Billy Proctor, who was ruled out of the remainder of the tour.
Recent Form
New Zealand arrive on a run of six consecutive wins, a sequence that includes Nations Championship victories over France, Italy and Ireland followed by their three tour wins over South African franchises. Those performances grew progressively more dominant, with the All Blacks scoring 50 or more points against both the Sharks and the Bulls after a tighter physical contest against the Stormers.
South Africa come in on the back of a 12th successive victory, though the most recent was a closer affair than the run suggests. They were pushed hard by Argentina in Buenos Aires, winning 17-10 after the scores were level at 10-10 late, with a Cameron Hanekom try from the base of a scrum settling it.
The head-to-head record favours New Zealand overall, with 63 wins from 110 Tests by the end of 2025. Recent meetings have gone the other way, with South Africa winning five of the last six. Their most recent encounter was a 43-10 win for the Springboks in Wellington last year, in which they scored 36 second-half points.
Much has changed for New Zealand since then. Dave Rennie has taken over as head coach, replacing Scott Robertson.
