What makes a rivalry great?

I’ve watched the Springboks play the All Blacks live ten times – more than I’ve watched us face any other opponent. I’ve seen five wins, and five losses. I was there for the utter heartbreak in Durban when we lost 15-57 in 2016. And I was also there for the pure joy and exhilaration in Paris when we won the 2023 Rugby World Cup final 12-11. The games we play against the All Blacks are the ones I look forward to most every year, the ones that feel like they have the most at stake, and the ones that conjure up the craziest mix of emotions – nerves, excitement, pride, frustration, joy.

The first home Bok game I ever went to was the Springboks v the All Blacks at Ellis Park in 2013. I was anxious about going alone, and waited until the last minute to buy a ticket, ending up with what seemed like the last available seat in the stadium, high up on the east stand. We lost 27-38, but the experience of being in those stands that seem to loom over the pitch menacingly, witnessing the roar of the plane flyby, the even bigger roar of the crowd belting out the anthem, the spectacle of the haka, the clash of two exceptional teams on the field, and even the kindness of the All Blacks supporters sitting next to me who bought me an ice cream to take the sting out of defeat (and were from Wellington, NZ, not Wellington, SA) made an indelible mark. So much so that I was back the next year to be part of the absolute jubilation of Patrick Lambie securing victory with that incredible kick. Indeed, anyone who knows me, or has had even the most casual conversation about rugby with me, knows that I believe fervently that if you can only ever go to one game of rugby in your life, it should be the Springboks against the All Blacks at Ellis Park. There is simply nothing like it. So, it’s safe to say that I am very excited that Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry finally kicks off properly this weekend with a clash at that intimidating ground.

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Of course, there are those who have taken exception to the name of this tour. For some, the question is simply whether it needed a name at all, other than just calling it what it is – a New Zealand tour of South Africa (and, perplexingly and annoyingly, the USA). Fair enough, but of course there was always going to be a desire to leverage the historic nature of this tour, the first in 30 years, as well as the longstanding relationship between these teams and their fans. And given that the Rugby Championship format has evolved to feature mini tours, with the two sides playing both games against each other in South Africa or New Zealand in alternating years, rather than the old home and away structure, there also needed to be something to make the differentiation between that and this tour clear. To set it apart as something unique and special. But for others, it’s the actual name that seems to have really caused upsetness. How dare we call this the greatest rivalry in rugby?! The audacity. I won’t lie, some of the discourse on the good old socials comes across as quite bitter, and more than a little envious (and a lot of that online jealousy seems to be a particular shade of shamrock green…). I suppose that everyone wants to believe the rivalry their country has with another opponent is the best. Which begs the question of what makes a rivalry the greatest.

To be clear, this debate has been going on since long before the marketing around this tour began. I remember getting into a discussion with someone a few years ago who argued that England v Wales was the most exciting, compelling rivalry in rugby. Now, I’ve watched them play, and it’s a fixture that generally bores me to tears. But for the fans, I’m sure it’s something else entirely. Because some rivalries are built not as much on rugby as they’re built on history, geography, and culture. The antipathy that Wales, Scotland, Ireland, and even France, hold for England goes waaaaay beyond a rugby field. I understand why those clashes hold so much emotional weight. England v Scotland is also the oldest international rivalry in rugby, with the first game between those teams played in 1871. That doesn’t necessarily make it the greatest, but still, it is something special.

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Back to 2023, and the man who proposed that England v Wales is the best rugby rivalry (who funnily enough, was neither English nor Welsh, but Irish…and also felt at the time that the All Blacks had a better rivalry with Ireland than South Africa…recency bias is a terrible thing). His argument that South Africa v New Zealand couldn’t be the fiercest rivalry hinged on the idea that it is a one-sided affair, whereas England v Wales is much more competitive. There certainly was a period of time when it was quite one-sided. Yet even then, South Africa maintained a better win rate against New Zealand than any other country. So, while the idea of what makes a good rivalry is probably a subjective one, let’s look at some objective facts. The rivalry between the Springboks and the All Blacks is a clash between the two most successful teams in the game’s history. Like it or not, that is a fact. They have each spent more time individually at number one in the world than any of the other teams who have held that position have done so…combined. Of course, they have also dominated the Rugby World Cup, with South Africa holding four titles and New Zealand three of the ten on offer. The titles won by Australia (two) and England (one) also coincide with the only three occasions when the final didn’t feature one or both of South Africa and New Zealand. In terms of the rivalry between the two teams, they have played each other 110 times since their first match in 1921. They’re the team we face most often, and we’re the team they play the second most, after their neighbours, Australia. Overall, the All Blacks have won 63, the Boks have taken 43, and the teams have drawn four times. I always feel that professional era stats are more meaningful, and the Boks have a 33%-win rate against the All Blacks since the amateur days ended. I guess that number might suggest to some, like my sparring partner from 2023, that it’s not much of a rivalry. But no one else comes close to beating the All Blacks as often as the Springboks do – Australia has a 24%-win rate against them in the professional era, England’s is 21%, France’s is 20%, Ireland’s is 19%, Argentina’s is 12%, and Scotland, Wales, and Italy have never beaten them in the professional era (Italy does have one draw on record after the cancelled fixture at RWC 2019). At this point it’s starting to feel like I’m mostly showcasing how hard it is to win against the All Blacks… Enter Rassie Erasmus. Since his involvement as Director of Rugby and Head Coach began in 2018, the tide has started to turn. Since then, we’ve played each other 15 times, and the Boks have won eight of those, along with one draw. In the last ten games, we’ve won seven. And in the last five, four went the way of the Springboks.

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So, while the All Blacks’ warm up games against the provincial teams have largely been damp squibs, I think it’s safe to say that’s no reflection of what we should expect from the Tests. The real rivalry is heating up. On and off the field. There’s been plenty of chatter in the media about style of play, and plenty of online banter (to put it nicely) between the fans. At the end of the day, all the statistics and technical facts aside, the heart of any rivalry comes down to people and their emotions. For me, this rivalry has always been grounded in respect. There are, naturally, outliers, and we have seen the rise to prominence of some truly toxic social media trolls, from all fan bases, but you only have to talk to real fans and you’ll discover there is a kindred spirit that supporters and players from these teams share. Do we want to smash them on the field? Obviously. But before and after the game, we’ll also share a drink, a laugh, an ice cream. And ask the players from either side who their most formidable or respected opponents are, and they almost invariably mention each other. The only truly negative interactions I’ve ever seen in person between the two sides have been between locals – those who support SA and those who support New Zealand despite being South African. Which is something else that makes the dynamic of this rivalry unique, and perhaps a little difficult to fully appreciate, especially for outsiders. There are South Africans who support the All Blacks wholeheartedly for longstanding political reasons, and while many are converting in the wake of Rassie’s efforts to transform the team, I can understand those who haven’t yet. And then there are South Africans who support the All Blacks just because they want to, which, frankly, is more than a little cringeworthy, but hey, whatever floats your boat. Just don’t get upset when people make fun of you for passionately singing the national anthem of a country you probably don’t even know the capital of. It’s weird. Anyway. I digress. The point is, for the most part, it’s a rivalry that doesn’t really have any of the underlying animosity that some of the northern hemisphere rivalries seem to have – we may sing over the haka to accept the challenge it represents, but we would never boo each other’s anthems, as we sometimes see during the Six Nations. I think for some people, that kind of animosity raises the stakes and heightens the value of a rivalry, but I think I prefer it without the venom. Go to Mbombela for a game against the All Blacks, and every street pole in town will be plastered with posters about the Springboks, and the digital boards on the highway leading there from Joburg will show messages saying, “Go Bokke!”…but we’re hospitable, so there’ll also be one or two saying “Welcome All Blacks.”

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And while I would never (ever ever) join the ranks of South Africans who support the All Blacks as their first choice team, I will back them against other opponents, depending on who those opponents are…it’s a very convoluted rating system that we do not have to get into here, I’ve already waffled on long enough, but safe to say, I generally want them to do well in the end of year tours. The respect I have for them and this rivalry means I also know better than to write them off. I have been in the stadium when it looked like we were sure to win, only for them to turn it around in the final moments. Who can forget Loftus in 2018, when we were leading well into the second half? The friend I went to the game with brought a colleague with her, and he kept confidently assuring me that we had the game wrapped up. I implored him not to jinx it. He laughed at me. The All Blacks went on to win by two points. And he never came to a game with us again.

Like I said at the start, I’ve been in the stadium for some incredible highs, and some crushing lows. Of course, I’ve also borne witness to others at the pub (breakfast beer, anyone?) and at home. It’s the highs that matter the most, though, and I genuinely believe there will be many of those in the coming games. I may respect the opposition, but that doesn’t mean I don’t think we can win - if I sound like I'm hedging my bets, please see my aforementioned fear of jinxing things. And ultimately, whether you accept that this is rugby's greatest rivalry (as you should), or you think it’s just an annoying bit of marketing speak, we’re in for one hell of a tour.