Rassie sizes up Boks’ Nations Championship opposition: ‘We have a big job ahead’

The Boks are currently top of the pile of the southern hemisphere teams on the Nations Championship log. Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus said he was excited about the challenges awaiting his team on November’s Nations Championship tour through Europe. The Boks will take on Italy, France and Ireland and look to win all those games to finish top of the pile in the South Section of the competition. If they manage that they will face off with the top team on the North Section log to be crowned champions of the hemispheres. As things stand, the Boks have 15 points from their three bonus point wins in July against England, Scotland and Wales. New Zealand are just behind them, on the same number of points, followed by Australia, Argentina, Japan and Fiji. And leading the way on the North Section log are France, followed by Scotland, England, Ireland, Wales and Italy. The first round of matches in part two of the inaugural Nations Championship take place next weekend already, with the Boks facing Italy in Genoa. Then it’s France in Paris, followed by Ireland and Dublin, before all the teams play a fourth match in the month on the Finals Weekend on 27, 28, 29 November in London. All the games are hugely important “Each one of these teams will pose different threats and challenge us in various ways, and the fact that these matches now form part of a competition will add even more impetus to these games,” said Erasmus, when he named his 37-man tour group on Wednesday. “Italy may be ranked 11th in the world at this stage, but they are a quality team who have tested us to the limit at times, so we will not be fooled by the standings.” France could pose the biggest challenge for the Boks. “France will also throw everything at us as usual, and with the side being ranked fourth in the world, it shows what they are capable of,” said Erasmus. “It is never easy against them, and there have been times when we had to dig deep for the desired result, with two of the last five matches between the sides finishing in a one-point win – one of which was the 2023 Rugby World Cup quarterfinal, while two were decided by three and four points respectively, with each team winning one of those, so we know it’s going to be another epic battle.” Erasmus said Ireland would always be tough to face at home. “Ireland will present an equally stern challenge. They’ve won four of the last six matches against us, including our 2023 Rugby World Cup pool match, although we won our last outing in Dublin a year ago, so neither team will hold back.” Erasmus added: “We need to be sharp, accurate, and adaptable in all our remaining matches to achieve the desired results if we want to finish the league stages as the top team. “This is an intense competition and every point counts. We have a big job ahead.”