Innholdsfortegnelse for December 2025 - January 2026 i SA RUGBY

Saveatama Eroni Clarke vividly recalls one wet day in the winter of 1975. He was just six years old, having been bom in Apia, but raised in west Auckland. ‘I can still recall that 1975 Test between the All Blacks and Scotland at Eden Park. My father sat us down and said, “Watch the No 11.” He scored a couple of tries in that game. From that moment, I dreamed that I could play for the All Blacks, because of Sir Bryan Williams,’ says Clarke. ‘When I got to play for the All Blacks [17 years later], I realised the power of influence that we [Pasifika role models] have.’ The 1970s were not easy times to be Pasifika (people of the Pacific Islands) in New Zealand, the age of the…

A sweltering day in Washington and they came from far and wide to wave off the USA team bound for England and the Women's Rugby World Cup. The biggest crowd to witness a women's international in the States packed Audi Field, where Wayne Rooney once played and later managed Major League Soccer team DC United. Then the screaming began. They were there supporting a team ranked 10th in the world but it was Ilona Maher, the sport's most followed player, most had come to see. Rugby is a team game but in US sport, star appeal is what sells. Three days earlier, the US Eagles centre had delighted her eight million social media disciples by going to Hollywood and picking up a sporting Oscar, the high-profile ESPY award for Best…

WALES 0 SPRINGBOKS 73 Andre Esterhuizen powers over for the Springboks’ eighth try in Cardiff. The world champions wrapped up a second straight unbeaten end-of-year tour, while Wales were left reeling from a record home defeat. IRELAND 13 SPRINGBOKS 24 The Springbok scrum obliterates Ireland during the brutal dash in Dublin. The world champions scored four tries to win at the Aviva Stadium for the first time since 2012. ITALY 14 SPRINGBOKS 32 Utility back Ethan Hooker scores his first Test try after collecting a cross-kick from flyhalf Manie Libbok. The Boks had to dig deep for victory after lock Franco Mostert received a straight red card in the 12th minute. FRANCE 17 SPRINGBOKS 32 A smiling Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu runs in the Springboks' fourth try at the Stade de France.…

ELLIS PARK 'My home ground - and the venue of my first Test match, against France in 2001. For me, Ellis Park stands above every other stadium I ever played in. The surface was a thick, lush carpet of grass, and the altitude made it brutal for visiting teams, many of whom struggled to stay competitive for the full 80 minutes as their lungs burned in the thin air. Running out for my first Test to a packed stadium, I felt an indescribable energy surge through my body - a spiritual kind of euphoria. The rush was so intense that I remember thinking if someone shot me in the chest, the bullet would drop at my feet in a hot, smouldering heap of lead.' ABOUT SARLA Slogan is ‘Passing on…

‘WE WON'T GET CARRIED AWAY WITH THE RESULT, BUT THE BEER TASTES A LITTLE BETTER' RASSIE ERASMUS AFTER THE SPRINGBOKS BEAT IRELAND IN DUBLIN FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE 2012 'THEY ARE ABSOLUTELY FREAKING IMMENSE' FORMER ENGLAND CENTRE WILL GREENWOOD ON THE SPRINGBOKS 'THE SIN-BIN SITUATION IS ALMOST FARCICAL NOW. WE ARE ABSOLUTELY RUINING THE GAME OF RUGBY' COACH EDDIE JONES AFTER JAPAN'S MATCH AGAINST WALES IN CARDIFF. THE BRAVE BLOSSOMS HAD THREE PLAYERS YELLOWCARDED, WHILE THE HOSTS RECEIVED A 20-MINUTE RED CARD ‘THEY’RE MAYBE THE BEST TERM EVER' FRANCE COACH FABIEN GALTHIÉ BEFORE THEIR DEFEAT TO THE SPRINGBOKS IN PARIS 'ESTERHUIZEN HAS DONE AN INCREDIBLE JOB - MAYBE EVEN A BETTER JOB IN THE BACK ROW THAN HE HAS BEEN A CENTRE ALL HIS LIFE' FORMER IRELAND MIDFIELDER BRIAN O'DRISCOLL…

Victor Matfield, the iconic World Cup winner and master of the lineout in his playing days, walked into the victorious Springbok change room in Dublin with a smile on his face and a rather small trophy in his one hand. But as Matfield spoke, his smile got bigger and the trophy size seemed to grow in stature. He confirmed that of the three Boks nominated for World Rugby's Player of the Year, Malcolm Marx was the winner. It was a raw and rampant moment, as it should be, because Marx's celebration happened in the confines of the squad's sanctuary and their match-day holy place, the change room. Marx's Springbok teammate, fellow hooker and biggest national team positional rival, Bongi Mbonambi, was the first to embrace his Bok brother as he…

The absence of South African teams in last season's Investec Champions Cup last 16 should not be mistaken for insignificance. The handprint of South African rugby on the tournament runs deep. The South African legacy, over the past 31 years, is in those South African-born players who successfully chased club rugby's most prestigious star. The two most dominant teams of the past decade, Toulon and Saracens, had a strong South African presence and South Africans were influential in the title wins of Toulouse and Leinster. If you dig deep enough, there is a South African story to be told from nearly every final, starting with South African-born and raised Bath flyhalf Mike Catt in 1998. Catt, a former SA U20 player, became a mainstay at Bath and for England, and…

MORNÉ ESBEN SAYS COBUS REINACH At 35, most international scrumhalves are considering their retirement options, not carving up Test matches in the world’s biggest stadia. But Cobus Reinach is ageing like a bottle of Stellenbosch cabernet - only getting sharper, stronger and more valuable with every pour. Reinach played 11 of South Africa’s 14 Tests this season, started six and scored five tries - three of them in some of rugby’s most hostile arenas: Wellington’s Sky Stadium, the Stade de France in Paris and Dublin’s Aviva Stadium. That’s not a résumé; that’s a flex. What makes him irreplaceable right now isn’t just the scoreboard. It’s the way he’s stitching the Springbok attack together. His kicking game has been razor-accurate, his tempo around the park has been relentless, and he’s shown…

WHO SHOULD BE CROWNED 2025 WORLD RUGBY PLAYER OF THE YEAR? Three Springboks - flank Pieter-Steph du Toit, hooker Malcolm Marx and prop Ox Nché - were in the running for the World Rugby Player of the Year award along with France winger Louis Bielle-Biarrey. We asked readers who deserved it the most. DID LOOD DESERVE A STRAIGHT RED CARD? Springbok lock Lood de Jager was given a permanent red card just before half-time of the blockbuster Test against France in Paris. De Jager's shoulder made contact with the head of France fullback Thomas Ramos, who was dipping and on one knee having been partially tackled by Cobus Reinach. After consulting with the TMO, referee Angus Bell gave De Jager a straight red. We asked readers if it was the…

When Zachary Porthen ran out in green and gold for the first time, the moment felt surreal, even to him. A 21-year-old tighthead prop isn't supposed to be this ready, this confident, this composed on the biggest stage of his life. But then again, Porthen has been outpacing expectation his entire career. From Wynberg Boys’ High head boy to SA Schools captain, from U20 stalwart to Currie Cup starter to Springbok No 3 in what feels like the blink of an eye, the Stormers prodigy has lived a rugby rise so steep that even those who believed in him earliest admit they didn't see it happening this fast. For those only discovering him now - and there are many Porthen's path has been remarkably linear. The kid from Wynberg Boys’…

1. How many cards did Ireland receive in their 24-13 loss to the Springboks in Dublin? 4 5 6 2. Which Irish player's yellow card was upgraded to red? Jack Crowley James Ryan Sam Prendergast 3. Who scored the Boks’ first try against Ireland? Cobus Reinach Damian Willemse Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu 4. How many scrum penalties did the Springboks win against Ireland? 4 5 6 5. Before 2025, when was the last time the Springboks beat Ireland in Dublin? 2012 2016 2022 6. How many tries did the Boks score in their 61-7 win against Japan at Wembley? 7 8 9 7. How many Springboks have won the World Rugby Player of the Year award? 3 4 5 8. Who won the 2025 World Rugby Coach of the Year award? Andy…