BALTIMORE — A blockbuster four-test rugby series between South Africa and New Zealand is set for its deciding clash next Saturday, but the decider will play out without two of the teams’ most impactful stars after a dramatic third test that saw the world champion Springboks claim a narrow 29-24 victory to move ahead 2-1 in the overall series.
Both teams flew to Baltimore together on Sunday, already reeling from key injuries sustained during Saturday’s physical encounter. Cheslin Kolbe, South Africa’s standout goalkicker who delivered near-flawless performances across the first three matches, suffered a broken jaw after a collision with New Zealand’s Luke Jacobson. All Blacks captain Ardie Savea is at high risk of a dislocated right shoulder sustained during a ruck clearout from Springbok Jasper Wiese, while All Blacks center Quinn Tupaea sustained MCL damage that will also rule him out of the final test. None of the three will be available for selection, and neither side has announced plans to call up replacement players for the closing match, which will be hosted at the Baltimore Ravens’ NFL stadium.
For Springboks coach Rassie Erasmus, the come-from-behind series lead — secured after a loss in the opening test — came as a significant relief. He described the contest as a grueling, high-stakes epic encounter, saying he was simply grateful to walk away with the win.
Erasmus pointed to his long-standing familiarity with the Springbok squad as the key edge that separated the two sides. The South African coach has overseen the national program since 2018, giving him nearly a decade of insider knowledge of his players’ strengths, communication styles, and resilience under pressure. In contrast, New Zealand coach Dave Rennie only took over the All Blacks setup this past June, still in the early stages of building team cohesion.
“Dave doesn’t have that luxury yet,” Erasmus explained. “He’s building a team and I know what that feels like; in 2018 I got the team 18 months before a World Cup. I know these players inside out. They know me. They know when to take me serious and when not. We’ve got the luxury of knowing each other for nine years, through tough times, and that’s not to say we’re always going to win because of that, but we’re just a little more used to navigating tough moments. Dave and his team will find that cohesion eventually, but for us, pushing through tight stretches is just that much easier.”
Erasmus noted the 29-24 scoreline was a fair reflection of the tightly matched contest, adding that the Springboks only grabbed their first lead of the test in the 60th minute after a grueling battle for dominance in set pieces. He also pushed back on any suggestions the result proved South Africa was far superior, acknowledging that good fortune played a role in the final outcome.
“We’re not sitting here thinking we are awesome,” he said. “We’re thinking there was also a lot of luck that went our way.”
For Rennie, the result was a disappointing one, as the All Blacks coach argued the gap between the two sides was razor-thin, and just two costly first-half errors ultimately shifted momentum against his team.
“It’s frustrating because there was a lot of effort out there but we just weren’t clinical in that first half and couldn’t wrestle momentum back when it mattered in that second half,” he said.
The first pivotal error came shortly after New Zealand scored to take a 17-12 lead in the second half. Young defender Leroy Carter failed to bring down South Africa’s Jesse Kriel, who broke free to score a critical try that leveled the score. Rennie defended Carter, noting the experienced defender was already beating himself up over the mistake.
“I feel for Leroy. He’s a good man, he’s a very good defender, I’m sure he’s hurting about that,” Rennie said. “Our job once they’ve scored was to bounce back, try and take control of possession but they were able to dominate the next 10 minutes and that was pivotal.”
The second turning point came when All Blacks star Will Jordan accidentally kicked the ball dead, gifting South Africa a scrum that quickly turned into a penalty, and eventually a rolling maul that led to a match-winning try for Springbok hooker Malcolm Marx.
“Just unlucky,” Rennie said. “It was a good option but you come back to a scrum, which is a penalty, which is a maul where they drive however many meters to score. We scrambled to try and get in front of it and they kept rolling through us. It was the only maul that troubled us today. It’s disappointing.”
The stage is now set for a highly anticipated decider next weekend, as the Springboks look to close out the series win while the undermanned All Blacks aim to pull off an upset draw against the world champions.