Springboks v All Blacks: Teams, kick off time, referee
· The South African
Both the Springboks and All Blacks will be viewing this weekend’s battle as a ‘semi-final’ of sorts considering that the team that loses will not be able to win the four-Test series, which is currently tied up at 1-1.
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The Springboks have lost Damian Willemse to injury for this clash, opting to shift Cheslin Kolbe to fullback, while Kurt-Lee Arendse returns on the wing.
Meanwhile, the All Blacks have rejigged their line up with three changes, the most notable switch coming in the front row as Asafo Aumua takes over from Codie Taylor.
The match kicks off at 17:10 and will be broadcast live on SuperSport.
HOW THE SPRINGBOKS AND ALL BLACKS WILL LINE UP FOR THE THIRD TEST
SPRINGBOKS – 15 Cheslin Kolbe, 14 Kurt-Lee Arendse, 13 Jesse Kriel, 12 Damian de Allende, 11 Ethan Hooker, 10 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, 9 Cobus Reinach, 8 Jasper Wiese, 7 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 6 Siya Kolisi (c), 5 Ruan Nortjé, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Wilco Louw, 2 Malcolm Marx, 1 Ox Nché.
Subs: 16 Deon Fourie, 17 Gerhard Steenekamp, 18 Thomas du Toit, 19 Lood de Jager, 20 André Esterhuizen, 21 Cameron Hanekom, 22 Morne van den Berg, 23 Manie Libbok.
ALL BLACKS – 15 Damian McKenzie, 14 Will Jordan, 13 Quinn Tupaea, 12 Jordie Barrett, 11 Leroy Carter, 10 Ruben Love, 9 Cam Roigard, 8 Ardie Savea (c), 7 Luke Jacobson, 6 Peter Lakai, 5 Sam Darry, 4 Tupou Vaa’i, 3 Tyrel Lomax, 2 Asafo Aumua, 1 George Bower.
Bench: 16 Samisoni Taukei’aho, 17 Xavier Numia, 18 Fletcher Newell, 19 Fabian Holland, 20 Wallace Sititi, 21 Kyle Preston, 22 Anton Lienert-Brown, 23 Josh Moorby.
Referee: Nika Amashukeli (Georgia)
Assistant referees: Angus Gardner (Australia), Christophe Ridley (England)
TMO: Eric Gauzins (France)
Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus said the team couldn’t wait for this big occasion at a packed FNB Stadium.
“We are excited that we will be playing at the FNB stadium, where on a good day there is an 80 000 strong crowd, and that will be a new and exciting experience for our players because most of these players have never ran onto the field there, and the support we enjoy there will add to the occasion.
“With the vuvuzelas and passionate crowd there, we can hardly hear one another on the field, so we are all thrilled about this occasion. But make no mistake, this is going to be another intense battle between the two top teams in the world who are both looking to get an edge in the series, so we know what we have to do, and composure and accuracy are going to be vital for both sides.”
Stats and facts:
Springbok record against New Zealand: Played: 112, Won: 44, Lost: 64, Drawn: 4. Points for: 1 899; Points against: 2 328; Tries scored: 185; Tries conceded: 257. Win %: 39,2%.
Miscellaneous:
- The average caps per player in the backline is 52, the forwards 74, while the players on the bench average 28.
- Eben Etzebeth will extend his record as the most capped Springbok player of all time to 145 caps when he takes the field.
- The loose trio of Siya Kolisi, Pieter-Steph du Toit, and Jasper Wiese will pass the record they currently share with Francois Louw, Willem Alberts, and Duane Vermeuelen as the loose trio with the most Test starts at 17 – three more than Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus, Andre Venter and Gary Teichmann, who started 14 Tests together.
- Should he take the field, Deon Fourie will stretch his record as the oldest Springbok player to play in a Test match at 39 years by a further week.
- The Springboks and All Blacks have only met twice at the FNB Stadium in history in 2010 and 2012, with the All Blacks winning both matches (29-22 and 32-16).
- Jasper Wiese requires only two more Test match appearances after this match to join the group of players who have earned 50 Test caps.
- The Springboks have won six of the last eight matches between the teams dating back to August 2023.
- The total Test caps in the Springbok starting line-up is 958. There are 366 caps in the backline, with 592 caps among the forwards. On the bench, there are a further 222 caps.