Australia will have to wait another year to try and win back the Bledisloe Cup after falling to a 24-33 defeat. It was yet another terrible start from the Wallabies, conceding three tries in the opening 25 minutes to find themselves trailing 3-20. To make matters worse, Tate McDermott went down with a nasty hamstring injury, but as they have often done this TRC, Australia started to claw their way back into the contest. Billy Pollard dug his way over from close range before Harry Potter forced his way over the chalk less than 10 minutes later to bring the score back to 17-20 at the break. Another slow start to the second half had the Wallabies in a tough spot, before Carlo Tizzano scored for the Wallabies to make it a two-point game with 10 minutes to play. However, a yellow card to Potter minutes later all but sealed Australia’s fate. It was a strange Test match, which has been somewhat ordinary for Australian games in 2025, and although the Wallabies were well in the fight in the last 10 minutes, the scoreline did flatter them. They were outworked across the park and gave up the ball on far too many occasions, but the likes of Pollard, Len Ikitau and Harry Wilson impressed.
The All Blacks’ Rugby Championship hopes are still alive after last week’s 33-24 win over Australia. However, they failed to pick up the bonus point, meaning they trail South Africa by one point heading into the final round, essentially leaving the fate of the competition winner in the Springboks’ hands, but the win at least ensured the Bledisloe Cup will be staying on this side of the Tasman for another 12 months, as the ABs played Australia out of the game. Large passages of play were controlled by the hosts, especially in the opening 25 minutes, as New Zealand shot out of the gates to score the games’ first three tries for a 17-point lead. However, the All Blacks’ discipline slipped away from there, especially around the breakdown, with some schoolboy errors and lack of precision in the cleanout welcomed the Aussies back into the contest. It was another dominant start to the second 40 and while the tries didn’t come around this time, the boot of Damian McKenzie kept the scoreboard ticking over, before Cam Roigard sealed the game with his second try with five minutes to play. It was another standout showing from the halfback, again proving why he’s the first choice No.9, while Fabian Holland had another busy outing and Quinn Tupaea had a great cameo off the bench.
In all, it was a solid showing from the All Blacks last week, despite winning by just nine points and they are a clearly superior team to this Wallabies outfit. A tidier, more disciplined performance this week in Perth will result in a comfortable victory and that is what I am expecting to play out, with the likes of Tupaea and Leicester Fainga’anuku to make a real difference in the starting team.
Best
New Zealand -4.5 ($1.85)
Value
New Zealand 13+ ($2.90)
Argentina slumped to another heavy loss in South Africa, this time losing 30-67 to put an end to their Rugby Championship aspirations. The title was very much up for grabs heading into Round 5 but Los Pumas were hugely outclassed in the final 50 minutes, getting embarrassed in front of the Durban crowd by an unstoppable Springboks team. It may be hard to believe that there were no tries scored by the 30-minute mark of the game, given the final score, but once the tries started, they did not stop coming. It was South Africa who broke the deadlock, but Los Pumas responded in style, with two tries — one of which being a penalty try — before the break, making it 23-25 at the half. However, they couldn’t take that momentum into the second 40, as they quickly fell behind 23-39 and as the Springboks’ scoring continued, the scoreline got uglier and uglier for the Argentinians. Joaquin Oviedo and Tomas Albornoz and looked like Argentina’s most dangerous, but the team’s attack was toothless compared to the Springboks in full flight.
South Africa produced an amazing 50 minutes of rugby to put one hand on the Rugby Championship trophy, outscoring Argentina 61-21 to record an important bonus point win at Kings Park. Sascha Feinberg-Mngomezulu produced perhaps the best performance of any player in 2025, distributing dangerously and accurately, while making plenty of incisive carries of his own to torture the Pumas’ defence. With blistering pace, an eye for gaps and the ability to execute almost any play, Feinberg-Mngomezulu was in unstoppable form with a hattrick of his own while setting up some great tries, including via a pinpoint crosskick to Cheslin Kolbe to open the scoring in the second half. Elsewhere on the park, the offloads were flowing and the Springboks attack was operating with fluidity, underscoring just how dangerous this SA team is when in full flight.
With this game held at a neutral venue, Argentina lose their home ground advantage and that will be a big factor in this contest. Add to that the fact that the Rassie Erasmus has named a near-identical team to last week’s, and we have the recipe for another big Sprinboks total. I expect the Boks to hoist the trophy in style in London.
Best
South Africa -13.5 ($1.90)
Value
South Africa 11-20 ($3.10)