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Bok report card: All 51 South Africa players rated for 2024
The Springboks came within two late kicks of a perfect record across 2024. A Ciaran Frawley drop goal in the 80th minute in Durban and a shanked Manie Libbok Libbok penalty in the 79th minute in Santiago was the difference between South Africa claiming a clean sweep from 13 Tests and settling for 11 wins.
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Still, this was a fantastic year for the world champions who lifted the Rugby Championship and left Europe with three victories from as many games.
What’s more, Rassie Erasmus fielded a whopping 51 players and trialled multiple combinations in a range of key areas on the park. Eben Etzebeth became the most-capped Springbok of all time, Vincent Koch and Kwagga Smith each reached 50 caps and 12 players made their international debut. By all counts this was a vintage year.
But how did the individuals within the collective perform? Was every member of the group a superstar in his own right? Or were there some malfunctioning parts within the otherwise thrumming machine?
For this task I’ve tallied the points out of 10 awarded to each Springbok by a range of Rugbypass writers (myself included) after each Test. I felt that some scores were generous – did Cameron Hanekom really deserve a 7.5 for his sloppy debut against Wales? – and that others were harsh – Etzebeth wasn’t that bad against Ireland, was he? – but I’ve stuck with the formula and backed my colleagues.
Now doubt this will garner universal agreement in the comments section.
Edwin van der Merwe – 9.5
Benefits here from only playing one game against an awful Wales, but does deserve credit for his jaw-dropping try that stole headlines. Deserves another game or two in 2025
Cheslin Kolbe – 8.2
My pick for world player of the year, the diminutive winger was outstanding in most of his nine Tests. Received a 10/10 for his show against Argentina in Mbombela and was magnificent against England, scoring two stunning tries.
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Pieter-Steph du Toit – 8
Officially the best player on the planet, the Malmesbury Missile rarely dipped below excellent over ten Tests. Playing in the second row against Australia he still registered a score of 9.5 and then notched an 8.5 against New Zealand as he bossed the back row. It’s no coincidence that when he was slightly off his game – with a score of 6.5 – against Ireland, the Boks were on the wrong side of the result.
Wilco Louw – 8
Only played two matches but was immense in both. Provided solidity in the scrum against England and then consumed poor Nicky Smith in Cardiff. South Africa’s prop stocks are well supplied.
Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu – 7.7
Came off the bench and landed a monster kick from the half-way line back in June against Wales and his star continued to rise. Dazzling in the tune-up against Portugal and totally assured against the Wallabies and All Blacks, he would have surely been in the running for breakthrough player of the year had he not suffered an untimely injury. 2025 could be the year he makes the number 10 jersey his own.
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Ox Nche – 7.6
Low scores against England (5) and in the second Test against Australia (6) give a false impression of what was one of the best 12 months a prop has ever produced. Indomitable in the wet piece and rampant when things get loose, he’s added a passing and running game to his sweeping repertoire. His twin show stopping games against Argentina underlined his value.
Cameron Hanekom – 7.5
If I was scoring Hanekom’s only game of the year – against Wales in Cardiff – I’d have given him a 5. This shows how rugby can be interpreted multiple ways but also shows the young man’s potential. He’ll get plenty of opportunities to prove me wrong in 2025.
Willie le Roux – 7.4
He might be crawling his way to 100 Test caps but he’s still kicking at the elite level. Cross-field kicking, chip-kicking over a rush defence, making sure that counter attacks and switches in play kick into extra gears. Two scores of 8 – against Ireland and Australia – prove that he’s still up to the task.
Siya Kolisi – 7.3
Thriving with more freedom in Tony Brown’s flowing attack, he’s finding more time on the ball out wide and around the fringe. Still a force when carrying into contact or clearing rucks, the Boks skipper had one of his best years in green.
Jasper Wiese – 7.3
Missed the first six Tests of the year, he returned and made the No. 8 jersey his own. Though not the spectacular rangy operator like some of his rivals in other teams, he is consistently powerful and his final four scores of 8, 8, 7, and 8 demonstrate his ability to do the basics well.
Eben Etzebeth – 7.2
Only Malcom Marx equalled Etzbeth’s tally of 12 Tests but no-one started as many as the most-capped Bok in history who ran on nine occasions in 2024. Towering in the set-piece and destructive either side of the ball, he is firmly the world’s leading lock.
Kwagga Smith – 7.1
The versatile loose forward often serves as a cheat code off the bench and his scores reflect this. In the wins over Argentina (Mbombela), New Zealand (Johannesburg) and Australia (Brisbane) he left the woodwork to impact the game with important steals and go-forward ball.
Jesse Kriel – 7.1
Recognised as the best outside centre in the game at present, he rarely sets stadiums alight but also rarely has a poor game. His two low scores – in the loss to Ireland and in the win over England – were more a reflection of his team’s inability to bring him into the contest.
Damian de Allende – 7.1
It’s fitting that both first-choice centres ended the year with the same score. The pepper to Kriel’s salt, de Allende terrorises the gainline and also has an undervalued passing game.
Aphelel Fassi – 7
The most improved player in world rugby this year a score of 7 reflects a few standout games but also room for improvement. Started the year with an assured performance under the high ball against Wales, he was later exposed against England. Some lovely touches throughout, and a developing link-up game, offers encouragement for the future.
Thomas du Toit – 7
Would start for just about every other team, he had to make do with just five appearances. An 8.5 against Scotland and a 7.5 in the defeat to Argentina is a handy return for a valuable member of the squad.
Andre-Hugo Venter – 7
Followed in his father’s footsteps when he scored a try on his Springboks debut against Portugal, his Test career had a dream start. Deserves another crack in the new year.
Grant Williams – 6.9
He ended the year as the first-choice scrum-half, but this is a consequence of a relatively poor show from South African nines, rather than his own excellence. A wonder try against England was a highlight and he showed composure in the first New Zealand Test. Consistency, however, eluded him.
Makazole Mapimpi – 6.9
With younger players breathing down his neck he needed to prove his worth. Still knows where the try-line is, having found it six times in five games, but doesn’t quite have that trademark punch in close quarters, even if he hasn’t lost any of his fight.
Ruan Nortje – 6.8
Handy without being outstanding, he now looks like an invaluable member of the South African line-out. His absence was noted in the final three games, he never dropped below a score of 6 in the five matches he played.
Johan Grobelaar – 6.8
Just the three Tests, but a score of 8 in the final outing against Wales boosted his annual output. The Bulls hooker was tidy, but a gulf remains between the two leading players in their position and the rest.
Elrigh Louw – 6.75
This was meant to be a breakout campaign for Louw, and in a way it was as he ended the season with 10 games to his name. However, some ropey shows, in the loss to Argentina and against England, curtailed his progress. His fans will choose instead to point to dominant displays against the Wallabies and All Blacks where he cut a confident figure in a settled back row.
Kurt-Lee Arendse – 6.7
Some particularly low scores – a 4 against New Zealand, a 5 in the loss to Ireland – bring him down, but this was still an excellent year for Arendse in which he scored five tries, including a brace against the Wallabies in a 33-7 win.
Franco Mostert – 6.6
The man they call ‘Sous’, Afrikaans for sauce, was both spicy and bland this year. He set tongues wagging against Wales where he scored a brilliant try after a scything line, but was pretty anonymous against Scotland and in the second game against Ireland.
Malcolm Marx – 6.6
It’s hard not to think that the world’s best hooker would have scored much higher across his 12 games if he started more of them. Still, his cameos off the bench were often the difference in tight games, especially against New Zealand in Cape Town where he entered the scene on 45 minutes, scored the decisive try and helped turn the tide.
Vincent Koch – 6.5
At his best against England, but off the pace against Scotland, this feels like a fair reflection of Koch’s contributions over 11 matches.
Handre Pollard – 6.5
There were more substandard performances than there were ones that can be described as world class. If it wasn’t for his deadly accurate goal-kicking, his place in the match-day 23 would be under threat. With that right boot of his, he is perhaps the most important figure in a match-day 23.
Lukhanyo Am – 6.5
Needed to prove himself indispensable but didn’t quite do that. A high of 8.5 against Portugal might not be enough to see him stay in the squad come the end of 2025.
RG Snyman – 6.5
Just the six matches, but a pair of 8s against England and Wales cancel out the 4 he scored in the loss to Ireland. On his day one of the best in the business.
Andre Esterhuizen – 6.5
One of those players unfortunate to be born South African in that he’d walk into most other midfields in the world. He shone against Scotland but lost points for a red card against Portugal.
Evan Roos – 6.5
Two games for this prospect. An unfortunately poor game against Portugal knocked down his score of 8 against Wales in JUne.
Jan-Hendrik Wessels – 6.5
Versatile and talented, handy cameos against Portugal and Australia point to a bright future.
Frans Malherbe – 6.4
Despite showing signs of wear and tear, and having lost a yard of pace, his value in the scrum remains sky-high. The platform he set against Argentina in Mbombela was instrumental to the comfortable win.
Ben-Jason Dixon – 6.4
A howler against New Zealand in Johannesburg saw him hooked shortly after half-time and dropped for the next game in Cape Town. Still, he was pretty consistent in the other four games he played.
Jordan Hendrikse – 6.3
Wasn’t awful against Wales and perhaps lost points as Feinberg-Mngomezulu shone in his place. Showed great character in his only other appearance – also against Wales – in the curtain-call Test.
Jaden Hendrikse – 6.2
This was not a vintage year for South African scrum-halves. Despite a decent show against Scotland, Hendrikse failed to stake a claim on his jersey and was especially off his game in the loss to Argentina.
Cobus Reinach – 6
One wonders if Erasmus was hoping to have already eased Reinach out of the picture. He continues to do a job, but his days of turning games on his own appear to be over.
Marco van Staden – 6
The back-row conveyer belt is working as it always has, but van Staden, and others, have not done enough to knock the incumbents off their perch.
Ntuthuko Mchunu – 6
A pair of 6s against Wales and Portugal, he’ll get another go next year.
Morne van den Berg – 6
After doing well against Portugal, he was poor against Australia.
Quan Horn – 6
Notched a try on debut in his only outing against Portugal, one could make the case that he deserves a slightly higher figure here given van der Merwe’s generous score.
Ruan Venter – 6
Yet another debutant, yet another player to receive a score of 6 in his only game of the year against Portugal.
Gerhard Steenkamp – 5.9
Three particularly low scores after the losses against Ireland (3) and Argentina (4) and against England (3) means that Steenkamp dips below a commendable 6 for the year. However, some knockout games against Wales, New Zealand and in the win over Ireland means these performances should be taken with a grain of salt. This was a very good season indeed for a man who has improved an already formidable weapon for the Springboks.
Bongi Mbonambi – 5.7
Not his best year, this was a mixed bag across nine Tests. Struggled at times at the line-out, he was often overshadowed by Marx’s performances off the bench.
Faf de Klerk – 5.6
Reduced to just three Tests, his score decreased as he went on. First a 7 against Wales, he followed that up with a 6 and a 4 against Ireland before injury ended his year early.
Manie Libbok – 5.5
The most divisive Springbok, he can do things no other fly-half can do when he’s on song. Unfortunately, he often fails to do the one thing most fly-halves are expected to do. His cross-field kicks and fizzing passes this year were overshadowed by his appalling miss off the tee in the loss against Argentina.
Phepsi Buthelezi – 5
Didn’t quite have the impact he would have hoped for against Portugal. Should get another chance to shine.
Trevor Nyakane – 5
Just the one game for the year as he fought against injury, Father Time and a host of younger props gunning for his jersey. There’s a chance we don’t see him in green and gold again.
Canan Moodie – 4
Poor against New Zealand where he was often the reason the rush defence was fragmented, and pretty innocuous against Scotland, Moodie needs a stellar 2025 to reaffirm the hype that surrounded him before the last World Cup.
Rugby’s best of the best, ranked by experts. Check out our list of the Top 100 Men's Rugby Players and let us know what you think!
Obviously very subjective so I'll only give you 49 out of 51 because 2 players ratings are missing...
No! Damn. Apologies for that.
Personally I think this player rating are correct.
Thank you for a better artical.
Not one of those that discriminate against the best team in the word,and glorify a surtian 2nd best rank team as the best.🤨
Didn't Salmaan Moerat play this year?
He did indeed. My bad. Will have to slot him in.
The most underscored player
on the list is Frans Malherbe. Impact he has on a game is not visible because he is not a flashy back. The pressure he puts teams under and the penalties he creates to give his team the advantages is massively under appreciated. His work rate is unbelievable for a prop. I would love to see a prop score card based on impact a dominant prop has on a game that includes general work rate vs other props
Agree 100%. Frans would be the second name on my team sheet, but that's only because Ox has been the star of the team since 2023.