Springboks Keep Marching On

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The two great rugby rivals did battle again yesterday with South Africa coming out on top for the 4th consecutive match which was last achieved over 70 years ago. The two teams have always had close contests and these matches between these two countries are definitely the highlight on the rugby calendar year.

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I am back in the UK later this year and may try and squeeze in the South Africa vs England game at Twickenham and the prices are far cheaper than I expected. The World Cup back in 2015 I paid 7 x more than what is being advertised now.

Yesterday there were 60 000 fans inside a stadium that could have easily sold out 5 x showing the demand for tickets. When the two test matches were announced earlier in the year the tickets were sold out for both venues in under 90 minutes. This all about about supply and demand and the demand is higher than the supply and why ticket prices may seem rather high these days.

The South Africa Rugby Board is definitely riding the crest of a wave right now and New Zealand are looking on rather enviously. When a team is winning people want to see you live and the demand is overwhelming.

This week the two rugby boards announced that New Zealand will do a full tour
of South Africa in 2026 that will involve 8 matches of which three will be test matches. The last time a New Zealand team toured was way back in 1996 so this would be a 30 year welcoming back.

The tour will help boost the New Zealand Rugby Union's coffers as they can expect every match to be sold out. I think any rugby fan would love to see these tours go back to what they were and not just have the British and Irish Lions tour your country every 12 years. Rugby has lost something by not having these tours and the players along with the fans would like to see this return.

South Africa moved away from the Super Rugby competition because it did not benefit themselves. The travel time was crazy and they would often find themselves away for may weeks at a time. New Zealand misses playing he South African franchises and they will be the first to admit that their rugby has lost that edge they once had.

Playing South Africa is South Africa in 2026 will also help prepare themselves for the World Cup which takes place in 2027 so this tour would serve multiple purposes. Playing the same style competition year in and year out has to change in order for the All Blacks to improve and they do see that now.

South Africa's next match is in Argentina and they have so much depth now they are having two teams consisting of 25 players. One team will fly over and the other will remain behind and why depth is important by having multiple players who are of a certain standard for every position. South Africa for the New Zealand game changed 7 players from the week before and still won. Rotating old for new and new for old is how experience is gained within the group and the new players are showing up the older players which is showing that this team is evolving and improving all the time.

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