THE GREATEST RIVALRY: ONE FINAL CHAPTER AWAITS IN BALTIMORE

My dear friend Mike Greenaway, senior rugby writer at IOL and author of The Fireside Springbok, has a wonderful turn of phrase when it comes to rugby.

Over the past few weeks, Mike and I have been waxing lyrical on Smile 90.4FM about Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry. 

He has been at all three Tests in South Africa, watching this extraordinary series unfold from close quarters.

For me, it has also been a deeply personal rugby journey.

Razia, Casey and I were fortunate enough to see both Cape Town matches the All Blacks against the Stormers and then the Springboks against the All Blacks at DHL Stadium. To experience the black jersey in Cape Town, surrounded by family and thousands of supporters of both teams, was something special.

But Mike and I kept coming back to one thought: the third Test in Soweto was going to be the pivotal match of this four-Test series.

And so it proved.

SOWETO DELIVERS A TEST FOR THE AGES

The Springboks’ 29-24 victory at FNB Stadium gave South Africa a 2-1 series lead and provided another reminder of why this rivalry remains so compelling. Both teams scored four tries in a brutal, absorbing contest in front of more than 85,000 spectators.

This was Test rugby stripped back to its essentials.

Pressure. Physicality. Courage. Scrums. Mistakes. Recovery. And two teams refusing to disappear.

The first half ended 12-12.

Ardie Savea was immense for New Zealand, scoring twice before injury forced him from the field. Will Jordan again showed how dangerous the All Blacks are from virtually anywhere on the field.

But South Africa gradually turned the screw.

The Springbok scrum became increasingly influential. Kurt-Lee Arendse scored, the Boks were awarded a penalty try, Jesse Kriel produced an important second-half score and Malcolm Marx powered over as South Africa took control.

Even then the All Blacks refused to surrender.

Samisoni Taukei’aho scored after the hooter, reducing the final margin to five points.

Springboks 29. All Blacks 24.

Four tries each.

Five points between them.

After 80 minutes of ferocious Test rugby, that is how small the difference was.

That, perhaps, is the Greatest Rivalry in one statistic.

MIKE GREENAWAY AND THE VIEW FROM THE FRONT ROW

Mike’s reflections on the Soweto Test captured the madness and magnificence of the occasion beautifully.

There was the bitterly cold wind sweeping across the stadium, the debate during the week about South Africa’s scrummaging, Pieter-Steph du Toit’s early physical statement on Jordie Barrett and the breathtaking ability of the All Blacks to counterattack when seemingly under pressure.

Then there was the Springbok pack.

Slowly, relentlessly, the scrum began to take control.

The Boks did not dominate every minute of the Test. Far from it. They had to absorb periods when New Zealand looked capable of tearing the game away from them.

But when the decisive moments arrived, South Africa handled them better.

For me, that is what made Soweto so important.

The Springboks had won 33-26 in Cape Town a week earlier. Soweto was the opportunity to prove that victory was not simply one great afternoon at DHL Stadium.

They did exactly that.

NOW FOR BALTIMORE

And now this extraordinary rugby roadshow heads somewhere neither of these teams would normally associate with deciding a Springbok-All Blacks series.

Baltimore, Maryland.

M&T Bank Stadium, home of the NFL’s Baltimore Ravens, hosts the fourth and final Test on Saturday, 12 September. It will be the first rugby union Test staged at the venue.

South Africa lead 2-1.

The equation could hardly be clearer.

The Springboks can win the series 3-1.

The All Blacks can salvage a 2-2 draw.

There is even something wonderfully symbolic about the trophy itself. It consists of two halves drawn together magnetically. If the series is drawn, each nation keeps one half. The winner in Baltimore takes both.

THE ALL BLACKS CHANGE THEIR HAND

New Zealand have responded to the Soweto defeat with significant changes.

Injuries have played their part. Ardie Savea, Luke Jacobson and Quinn Tupaea are unavailable, while Fabian Holland is out through illness.

But there are also some fascinating selections.

Richie Mo’unga returns at flyhalf for his first Test start of the series. Anton Lienert-Brown comes into midfield, Patrick Tuipulotu starts at lock, Ethan Blackadder joins the loose forwards and Codie Taylor returns at hooker and captains the team.

The All Blacks match-day 23 for Baltimore is:

1. Ethan de Groot – 44 Tests
2. Codie Taylor – 111 Tests (Captain)
3. Fletcher Newell – 40 Tests
4. Patrick Tuipulotu – 58 Tests
5. Sam Darry – 11 Tests
6. Tupou Vaa’i – 50 Tests
7. Ethan Blackadder – 14 Tests
8. Peter Lakai – 13 Tests
9. Cam Roigard – 23 Tests
10. Richie Mo’unga – 56 Tests
11. Josh Moorby – 4 Tests
12. Jordie Barrett – 84 Tests
13. Anton Lienert-Brown – 93 Tests
14. Will Jordan – 60 Tests
15. Damian McKenzie – 80 Tests

Reserves: Asafo Aumua (25), Xavier Numia (4), Tyrel Lomax (54), Josh Lord (16), Wallace Sititi (22), Kyle Preston (4), Rieko Ioane (88), Beauden Barrett (144).

That is still an All Blacks side containing an extraordinary amount of experience.

Beauden Barrett has 144 Tests. Codie Taylor has 111. Anton Lienert-Brown has 93. Rieko Ioane has 88. Jordie Barrett has 84. Damian McKenzie has 80.

And then there is Will Jordan.

Give him half a metre and the entire complexion of a Test match can change.

So while I look at all the changes and wonder whether the All Blacks are clutching at straws, history tells me never to dismiss New Zealand.

That black jersey has an irritating habit of responding when its back is against the wall.

ONE LAST 80 MINUTES

There is another fascinating dimension to Baltimore.

The All Blacks have previously played Tests in the United States against the USA, Ireland and Fiji. M&T Bank Stadium, however, will be entering rugby history by hosting its first Test. 

The occasion is also being viewed as part of the longer journey towards the United States hosting the 2031 Rugby World Cup.

What a stage, then, for the final chapter.

For those of us who have followed this rivalry for decades, this series has delivered exactly what we hoped it would.

It has reminded us that Springbok-All Blacks rugby is about far more than a scoreboard.

It is about history.

Respect.

Painful defeats that stay with you for decades.

Victories you can recall almost ball by ball.

Families divided by green and black.

And friendships like mine with Mike Greenaway, where hours can disappear debating one scrum, one selection or one moment that changed a Test.

Razia, Casey and I will remember being together at those two Cape Town games for years to come.

Mike will have his memories of following all three Tests across South Africa.

And now all of us get one final chapter.

Baltimore. Saturday, 12 September.

South Africa have the advantage.

New Zealand have nothing left to save for another day.

I still believe the Springboks have the edge. The All Blacks’ changes feel like a team searching for the combination that can rescue the series.

But I have supported the All Blacks long enough to know one thing:

write them off at your peril.

One more Test.

One more 80 minutes.

One more collision between the two most successful rugby nations of the modern era.

Whatever happens in Baltimore, the past few weeks have reminded us why five words still say it better than anything else:

This is Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry.

Special thanks to my friend Warren Kirkland for the photographs from the third Test at FNB Stadium in Soweto.

And to Mike Greenaway for his insights, observations and wonderful turn of phrase throughout this remarkable series.