South Africa have finally done it. Rassie Erasmus’ Springboks have won a back-to-back Rugby Championship for the first time in their history with a tight battle at Twickenham against an enthusiastic Argentinian side, winning only by 2 points. With the title victory secured, it is time to look back at who proved a point, and who lost out.
Australia, who had been knocked out of the Group Stages at the 2023 Rugby World Cup, now under the departing Joe Smidt, came into their stride. Repeat losses to the All Blacks do not do their involvement justice, including their incredible comeback from 22-5 down against the Boks to win 22-38 in the opening round at Ellis Park. Nic White retired from rugby and returned multiple times, showing his skill and providing a key figurehead to embolden the Wallabies’ effort. James Slipper made it to 151 caps before calling it quits in the final round at Perth, but the real stories come from the young guns coming through. Joseph Sua’ali’i, the rugby league winger-turned-union outside centre, proved more than his worth, alongside Max Jorgensen, a dynamic back who can cover wing and fullback. Australia’s power game has drastically improved, showing physicality in scrums, alongside good mauling, and rucks. Will Skelton, after being released for international duty by La Rochelle following disagreements between Rugby Australia dk the French club proved again why he deserves test starts, getting involved and making impacts throughout the rest of the tournament. Australia’s Rugby Championship is indicative that this is a team with potential, and more will be shown under new head coach Les Kiss during the Autumn Series. Australia’s Rugby Championship: 7/10
Argentina played hot and cold. Wins over the All Blacks and the Wallabies showed potential, and so did their performance at Twickenham, but there were also elements of their issues visible in their losses. Being pushed off their own ball by 7 men in a scrum must’ve hurt the forward pack in the final match, and the complete hammerings they were handed by the All Blacks (41-24) and the Springboks (67-30) showed gaps in Los Puma’s defence. Felipe Contepomi has done a stellar job in developing the Argentinian attack, with threats like Santiago Chocobares proving key to creating some incredible tries. Pablo Matera and Juan Pablo Montoya showed their form again and again, displaying that not only are the Argentinian old guard showing no sign of slowing down, but also that they are becoming even more threatening. However, discipline, especially when Argentina were on the back foot, was far from perfect, and silly penalties as well as desperate, dirty play became costly, giving away crucial territory. It felt at points that Argentina had taken the Pro-D2 approach to rucking. Although there were considerable losses, and Argentina finished at the bottom of the log once again, Los Pumas actually performed quite well, beating the All Blacks and Wallabies who were both carrying some good momentum, as well as putting in a solid performance at Twickenham despite an agonising loss. Argentina’s Rugby Championship: 6/10
New Zealand should be mostly chuffed. The Eden Park record was extended twice, and they beat every opposition. Leroy Carter has announced himself onto the scene and Ardie Savea proved himself again as one of the best backrowers in the world. Scott Robertson’s men put in dominant performances against Argentina and Australia, and although they did lose a match to Los Pumas, they bounced back to win against the World Champions. However, there is one result that will influence all analysis. 13/09/25. 43-10. A thirty-three point loss. Beaten. Bruised. Dominated. To think the score was only 17-10 at the 60th with 20 to go seems almost impossible. Yet it happened. The worst loss in New Zealand rugby history, conceding it to the Old Enemy, at home. A match that will be remembered for as long as the 57-0 win in 2017. While the other 5 matches were hard fought, tense, and New Zealand always felt in the fight no matter what, and were often leading, this one was different. Players like Beaden Barrett had suffered a similar loss in London two years ago to the same opposition, the score 35-7, but this was so much worse for the All Blacks. Destroyed at the scrum, exposed through the wide channels, and physically battered. New Zealand’s Rugby Championship was almost triumphant but a loss on this level is a signal to all that they can be beaten, or is it? It almost feels impossible to judge their championship because they were an 8/10 team, and even in the first half in Wellington they were at the same level. It felt like the two juggernauts of rugby colliding in battle, like Napoleon facing Wellington at Waterloo. But when the collapse came, they were exhausted to the bone. The Northern Hemisphere must be weary because New Zealand are coming with a point to prove. New Zealand’s Rugby Championship: 7/10
South Africa. World Champions. Back-to-back winners. Those three sentences almost say it all, but was this season as good as it could have been? Sure, Sacha Feinberg Mngomezulu proved himself as a potential generational fly-half, and Ethan Hooker showed how much the Boks could do with a powerful winger, but what about the losses. Eden Park was one, but it almost seems excusable, considering the All Blacks have won their last 52 matches there now. But Ellis Park? They may have been undercooked but that does not excuse the level of collapse they suffered. Furthermore, conceding two tries in the opening 10 at Eden Park showed that they could be stretched thin, and the defensive prowess the Boks are famous for is becoming more of a myth. That said, there were so many positives. Dealing the ABs their worst ever defeat (again), alongside back-to-back victories is far from signs of weakness, and many of the silly tries came from player errors rather than structural issues. Tonyball looks relentless at its best, and the Boks are finding their rhythm. The likes of R.G. Snyman, Jan-Hendrik Wessels, and Ryan Nortjie have provided so much impact in the forward pack, always being involved both with the ball and during rucks, scrums, and particularly for Nortjie, in the lineout. Much is to be said about the potential for further evolution, as they look to take on two of Europe’s best sides in the Autumn Tour, but if the structure of exhausting an opponent through power, and then brutally carving them up continues, this Bok side could truly evolve into the greatest. South Africa’s Rugby Championship: 8/10
What a championship it was this year, it is sad that we will only see its next full iteration in 2028/2029.