South Africa: World Cup Final Will Add Another Epic Chapter to the Greatest Rivalry in Rugby

25 October 2023
Daily Maverick (Johannesburg)
analysis By Craig Ray

Paris — The Springboks versus the All Blacks is the greatest rivalry in rugby and one of the greatest in all of sport. The two sides contest the final of Rugby World Cup 2023 at Stade de France in Paris on Saturday.

Former Springbok captain and 2007 World Cup winner John Smit has said it many times, but it's worth repeating to understand the status of a clash between South Africa and New Zealand on the rugby field.

"You debut twice for the Springboks. Your first debut is your first game for South Africa. Your second debut is your first game against the All Blacks," Smit told Daily Maverick before the 100th Test between the teams in 2021 in the strange setting of Townsville in Australia.

And perhaps there could be a third category -- a clash against the All Blacks at the World Cup.

Saturday's final of Rugby World Cup 2023 will be the sixth time the sides have met at the World Cup and only the second -- after 1995 -- that they contest the final.

The rivalry might be 102 years and 105 Tests old, but World Cup clashes between the two sides are rare.

New Zealand have won three times, the Boks twice. Three of those matches were knockout clashes -- the final of RWC 1995 (the Boks won 15-12), the quarterfinal of RWC 2003 (the All Blacks won 29-9) and the semifinal in 2015, won 20-18...

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