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All Blacks player ratings vs Springboks | The Rugby Championship
By Finn Morton
The All Blacks have lost The Freedom Cup with the Springboks winning another tense Test 18-12 at Cape Town’s DHL Stadium. It was a close battle all the way through but the world champions showed their class when it counted once again, whereas the visitors wasted some chances.
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Damian McKenzie had a chance to kick the All Blacks into the lead with less than 10 minutes to play but the playmaker sent the attempt wide left. The Boks were too good and made the All Blacks pay for that with their efforts to conclude the Test.
Here’s how the All Blacks rated.
All Blacks player ratings
Starting XV
- Tamaiti Williams – 6
Credit to Tamaiti Williams, the All Blacks turned their scrum around and the youngster deserves some praise for that. New Zealand were outmuscled in the first three scrums but Williams showed some mental resilience to help turn the team’s fortunes around.
But other than that, it was a bit of a quiet night for Williams. The loosehead prop didn’t carry the ball a whole lot – while he was more impactful on the defensive side of the ball, it wasn’t a standout performance in that regard compared to the rest of the All Blacks.
- Codie Taylor – 8
Codie Taylor was one of the All Blacks’ best during last weekend’s 31-27 loss at Johannesburg’s Emirates Airline Park, and that was once again the case in Cape Town. Taylor set the tone early with some significant carries – running for 36 metres before the 15-minute mark. The one-time Rugby World Cup winner came very close to scoring the opener as a result, too.
Taylor left the field for a HIA midway through the opening 40, but after returning shortly after, the hooker didn’t skip a beat. The All Blacks enforcer was practically perfect throwing into the lineout, was solid on defence, and he also won a penalty at the breakdown in the 38th minute.
- Tyrel Lomax – 7
Tyrel Lomax is easily one of the best tighthead props in Test rugby at the moment. Lomax was quite brilliant during last weekend’s first Test against the Springboks and the front-rower was able to back that up at DHL Stadium.
Lomax gave away a scrum penalty early in the contest but, with the set-piece evening out a bit later on, the experienced tighthead deserves some praise for that. But away from the scrum, and without delving into Lomax’s influence in attack or around the breakdown, the All Black was especially impressive in defence once again – leading the way at half-time for tackles made.
But it wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows. Lomax was sent to the sin bin, under review, with seven minutes left – a massive moment in the context of this battle between two groups of titans.
- Scott Barrett (c) – 7
It was another hot and cold night for All Blacks captain Scott Barrett. New Zealand’s skipper didn’t carry the ball once throughout the opening 55 minutes of the Test, but he was able to secure a couple of turnovers and make some telling stops in defence. With about 10 minutes left to play, Barrett made one of the plays of the night by winning a lineout off the Springboks’ throw.
- Tupou Vaa’I – 7.5
The rapid improvement of Tupou Vaa’i in 2024 is one of the stories of the year for the All Blacks. At just 24 years of age, Vaa’i has emerged as a genuine leader within this All Blacks unit and it seems the lock has found a place in the starting side under Scott Roberton.
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Vaa’i seemed to have a presence about him during this Test in Cape Town. Whether it was in attack or defence, the second-rower used his big frame to the All Blacks’ advantage as they went toe-to-toe with the world champions. Great effort all round from Vaa’i.
- Wallace Sititi – 7.5
If there’s one thing we’ve learned about Wallace Sititi it’s that the backrower is made for Test rugby. It was a bit of a surprise to see Sititi named at blindside flanker ahead of this clash with the Boks – he’s only played two professional matches in that position before, and both were for North Harbour – but the youngster proved to be a worthy replacement for Ethan Blackadder.
Packing down opposite a Springboks backrow of Siya Kolisi, Pieter-Steph du Toit and Jasper Wiese, Sititi didn’t back down to the challenge – the All Black embraced it. Sititi was one of the All Blacks’ top tacklers during the first term, and the No. 6 was also a workhorse in attack. Expect to see a lot more of Wallace Sititi in the All Blacks’ First XV moving forward.
- Sam Cane – 6
It was a quiet night for former All Blacks captain Sam Cane. Cane was sniping around the breakdown, as per usual, and was also busy around the park but the flanker wasn’t able to have a significant impact beyond some moments of brilliance.
Cane won a penalty at the breakdown in the 24th minute. At that stage, the All Blacks were parked right up on their own try line but the backrower was rewarded for some clever work. Now, the Test veteran wasn’t poor but rather outplayed during periods of the Test.
- Ardie Savea – 6
It was another unusually quiet night for All Blacks enforcer Ardie Savea. Savea, who is the reigning World Rugby Player of the Year, carried the ball a handful of times for less than 15 metres. On the defensive side of the ball, Savea was one of the All Blacks’ best with the backrower making a noteworthy 14 stops.
- Cortez Ratima – 6
This was always going to be a big Test for Cortez Ratima, When coach Scott Robertson named the All Blacks’ 23 on Thursday, Ratima had been given the nod at halfback – benching veteran TJ Perenara. In this fixture, Ratima failed to fire.
Without breaking the game open like we’ve seen in Super Rugby Pacific, Ratima was steady with both his passing and kicking game. The halfback helped drive the team around the park with a mostly composed performance, and later, Ratima won a penalty at the breakdown. That said, it was by no means a standout performance – it was somewhere in the okay to good range.
- Damian McKenzie – 5
It’s hard to know where to start with Damian McKenzie’s performance. McKenzie led the team around the park well in spurts but it was nothing like last week – it seemed impossible for the flyhalf to establish a sense of consistency against the Springboks’ defensive wall.
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McKenzie sent a few wasteful clearance kicks into the air and also had an off night from the goal-kicking tee. The playmaker shanked an attempt from about 55 metres out at one stage, and also missed what very well could’ve been the game-winner with less than 10 minutes to play.
- Mark Tele’a – 4
As much as Mark Tele’a tried, it just wasn’t his night. Tele’a popped up all around the park but struggled to make an impact against the Springboks, with the winger only carrying the ball four times for 13 metres. There was one moment to forget about 10 minutes into the contest, with the All Blacks’ No. 11 dropping the ball cold into touch.
- Jordie Barrett – 7.5
Jordie Barrett was once again one of the All Blacks’ best with the ball. Barrett carried the ball a handful of times for more than 45 metres – once again reinforcing the point that the All Black is one of the best No. 12s in the world at the moment. As for Barrett’s kicking game, there were some involvements to like and some wasteful attempts as well. Overall, another strong performance from the All Blacks’ inside centre.
- Rieko Ioane – 7
Whether or not Rieko Ioane should play at centre or the wing for the All Blacks is still a question that needs to be revisited. Ioane was good in the midfield but took things to an even better level after switching to the left edge during the second term. On the wing, Ioane made a couple of impressive bursts with the ball.
- Sevu Reece – 3
With Beauden Barrett dropping back to the bench, there was an opportunity for Sevu Reece to start in the No. 14 this week. It’s no secret that Reece is an exciting player when he gets going, but the winger just wasn’t on song against the Boks in Cape Town.
Reece was shown a yellow card in the 16th minute after taking out Willie le Roux in the air and the speedster never really recovered from there. The 27-year-old was beaten in the air a few times, missed some tackles, and seemed to be caught out of position once or twice, too.
- Will Jordan – 5
Will Jordan at fullback – it’s the selection All Blacks fans have been crying out for and coach Scott Robertson granted their wish on Thursday. Jordan was given the nod, and fans were rightfully eager to see what the 26-year-old could produce, and now we know. It was an off night for Jordan. The All Black has reached prolific try-scoring heights on the wing at Test level, but with the No. 15 on his back, he didn’t look like the same player at times.
Replacements
- Asafo Aumua – 6
- Ofa Tu’ungafasi – 5
- Fletcher Newell – N/A
- Sam Darry – N/A
- Luke Jacobson – 5
- TJ Perenara – 6
- Anton Lienert-Brown – 6.5
- Beauden Barrett – 5.5
Why the tighthead prop is still on the field after the 70th minute is beyond me. Especially when the understudies are Newell and Tosi - very competent options off the bench.
I want to see what Ruben Love can do at fullback for this team.
He thought he subbed on Darry? To deal with the Boks he should've gone with siix forward replacements and it's unforgivable they Darry didn't play his role. Razor is definitely the best coach NZ has but it's time to get the errors out of selection and substitutions. Emulating the Boks may be a hard to swallow pill but they are the standard and it's time for the Allblacks to have some humility and emulate them. Still very concerning all the fringe Crusaders in this team and Telea losing form. Havili should've been left at home for young talent, preferably in the forwards. The Allblacks are 4-0 through superior selection and coaching, the results are close but marginal players like Reece are too small to be effective in the air and yet keep getting chosen. The Wallabies tests are an opportunity to trial a bomb squad type structure, players knowing when they're coming on as a unit. The first two tests against England were very impressive but the forwards are struggling in the loose forwards with Cane and Savea with tiring, older legs and shouldn't still be going 80 minutes against the world number one. Congratulations Boks.
Razors got a silly fixation with everyone playing dual positions so pointless substitutions like moving Rieko to the wing at the end of the game have to be allowed. Hey Razor, how about you just use the backs subs for you know, injuries!!!
Sam Cane isn’t good enough. Too many average players means a mediocre team. Reiko is useless,Scott Barrett not far behind, and the clock is ticking..,
Robertson tells us after every loss the boys let it slip, we need to work harder. really why don't the media ask the real coach why the team is losing. Maybe TJ Peranara knows the answers, after all he has so much knowledge about the game, even more than the referee. I
TJ has a 85% winning record so he knows more than any of us fellah.
For comparison Justin Marshall was 75% so if anything nobody should listen to him.
Maybe Robertson needs to do a sub change at 55ish mins since all blacks seem to fall off in last quarter. 5-10mins isn't really a lot of time to grow into the game if you are put on the 70th min. The benefit the bomb squad has is they know when they are coming on always around 45-55min mark so they can be mentally prepared to strike as soon as they come on. You don't want to make bench changes too prescriptive but you should allow time for players to get a feel of the game before that high pressure last 10-15 mins
Dmac isn't good enough never has been at test level ,Reiko has to be moved to wing he sucks at center .
Stats prove otherwise buddy dmac didn't do anything wrong in the weekend bar miss some kicks Scott barret isn't good enough for test level and never has he's constantly making mistakes constantly
Think Dmac is good enough to be in this test team. It’s just that with the modern game shifting players around trying to figure out combinations sometimes takes the shine off a player’s natural ability and then they start to doubt themselves or they play to stay on the team so they’re not enterprising as they would be in their natural position. He reminds me a lot of Carlos Spencer - when he was on point he could shred the opposition to bits, but when he was off you just wanted to bury your head in the sand till the game was over.
Rieko should just stay on the wing. He’s more effective in space, although he carries well and is “filling” this gaping hole at centre for the team. AB’s need to look for another Tana Umaga or Ma’a Nonu type of player in the centres, until then they pose no threat to the opposition.
Last thought, NZ needs to do away with selecting only domestic players. The Boks have so much depth bc they ditched that system and started selecting even players who were playing abroad. Hence at lock they are 6-8 deep, same on the front row and now pretty much at any position. This team that won this weekend didn’t even have some of the combinations that were at the World Cup at yet the Boks managed to overcome. Imagine what the AB’s could réalisé with the same options. Just a thought. Overall, great test match. Much to improve on both teams.
Considering Foster never lost the RC and now NZ is fighting it out for 3rd place with Aust the amount of stick Foster received from the rugby media and online comments looks poor judgement at best and two -faced hypocrisy at worst. Excuses are now being rolled out for Robertson by people who called Foster the worst coach in AB history!
Foster's win rate is 69.57%. Of the 25 ABs head coaches he ranks 20th =. These are facts not opinions.
I cringe to think how worse Foster's record would be without Ryan & Schmidt being added in mid 2022. Where Razor ends up is yet to be determined.
Also the TRC over the covid era was a mess. The Boks didn't play in 2020, & were severely affected by travel in 2021. They also sent 'B" teams to some tests in 2022 & 2023. Clearly prepping for RWC.
Why do the A.Bs persist with using first fives taking the kicks( in this case McKenzie when you have Jordan Barrett on the park.
Stupid, stupid, stupid.I back Razor but come on, put that tradisional B.S in the trash and use the best man for the job( think John Ells, former Wallibies lock and goal kicker) !!!
Not quite. Richie Mounga & Jordie shared the conversions v IRE at RWC23 as I recall. And Jordie took long rangers. DMac had been dead-on leading into this test so he was clearly the best man for the job. As sometimes happens to the best of the best, he had an off day, missing two sitters & a long one.
It used to be fullbacks. DMac had a 92% accuracy this year until yesterday and has been nailing the long kicks while Jordie missed a long one in the WC final so maybe that's the thinking?
Lomax gets downgraded to a 5 for essentially throwing the match away.
BB gets a 3 for botching both an overlap pass (yes, Le Roux got a dodgy yellow but not the point) & a chip kick. Negative impact.
TJ gets a 3 for too much motormouth distraction & for sending a falcon bullet straight to Scooters head with the ABs hot on attack.
Blah blah blah lol . . .
P.S. Ref was a 10/10
Tj hasn't been good this season I think he's been quite poor and since he started running his mouth he's been worse I think Noah hotem should get a run over tj
Razor played Lomax for 73 mins
An absolute travesty
He was also the teams equal top tackler with 15
Surely they would’ve noticed this and subbed him earlier?
Ofa on at 70
Newell on at 74
Aumua did 10 mins early then nothing
Darry nothing
I’m not a coach Razor but considering the forwards bench impact was lacking last week this was even worse
Don't understand why Lomax, a tight-head, was kept on for 70 + minutes. Unheard of, particularly when you've a scrummaging tight-head (Newell) on the bench. Such a shame for a player who, with Taylor and Williams, had got the wood on the Bok scrum (after a wobbly start). But that was the game - Lomax gave away a scrum penalty against a fresh loosehead, then made a tired mistake and got yellow-carded. A red card for whoever was handling the bench.
There was a lot to like about what the ABs did in this series, but TJ, Sevu, Finau, have had their day. The ABs don't have the forward depth of the Boks and really missed Tuipolotu and De Groot. Vai'i was a revelation, but I wonder if Paddy had been there, Razor might have run Scooter at 6 and powered up our pygmy back row (full of hybrid 7s)? Scooter's getting turnovers, and high tackle count but needs to get more opportunities with ball in hand.
I think Scooter was on ruck clearing and we did much better there.
Patience with Finau, Kaino took years to mature. Doesn't mean to say that he shouldn't be dropped of course.
Good post. I'd like to hear from Jase Ryan about tight 5 bench strategy.
Tuipolotu is and has always been a plodder.