PiE SPORTS
South Africa finished the opening leg of the inaugural Nations Championship unbeaten, thumping Wales 43-0 in Durban — exactly as the PiE preview laid out could happen, though few expected the margin to be quite this emphatic. Elsewhere on a bruising Saturday for the Northern Hemisphere, New Zealand, France, Scotland and Australia all won, while Ireland’s unbeaten start came to an abrupt end at Eden Park.
The Springboks made good on their perfect record with a seven-try, 43-0 demolition of Wales at Hollywoodbets Kings Park — their biggest winning margin of the July series and, fittingly, their best performance of the three. Conditions were difficult and the ball was slippery, but a dominant South African pack simply ground Wales into the Kings Park turf, with the scrum in particular becoming a one-sided weapon in the closing stages.
The four uncapped players named in our preview all got through their debuts, headlined by winger Jaco Williams, who scored South Africa’s fourth try. Fellow debutants Vusi Moyo, Ruben van Heerden and Carlu Sadie all played their part in a display that, while short of the Springboks’ absolute best, answered the central question hanging over the match: whether a heavily rotated, injury-hit squad could still deliver a statement result. It could.
For Wales, it was a chastening way to end the tour. Having pushed South Africa close in Bloemfontein back in 2022, Steve Tandy’s side never got a foothold in Durban and were kept scoreless for the first time in this year’s competition, a world away from the narrow loss to Argentina and win over Fiji that had suggested a side building momentum.
Confirmed: The Ranking Question, Settled as Predicted
As our preview explained, South Africa’s world No. 1 ranking was never realistically at stake this weekend, regardless of Saturday’s scoreline — the gap to New Zealand was too large for a single result in Durban to close. That held true. The Springboks’ official ranking points won’t move until World Rugby’s Monday update, but their position at the top is secure. New Zealand’s win over Ireland trims the gap on the log, not on the rankings table, where the All Blacks remain a comfortable second.
Big Winners
South Africa — Perfect on paper, close to perfect on the field. Three wins from three, 13 tries conceded across the whole leg reduced to a miserly return, and — most importantly for Rassie Erasmus — four more players now have Test caps heading into a brutal second half of the year against Argentina, New Zealand and Australia.
New Zealand — Also three from three after a ruthless 40-21 win over Ireland at Eden Park, where the All Blacks have now not lost in 53 Tests. Six tries to three, a commanding first-half lead, and a timely reminder that New Zealand, not Ireland, look the sterner test for South Africa later this year.
France — A 42-15 win over Japan in Tokyo, built on two tries apiece from Matthieu Jalibert and Maxime Lamothe, moves Les Bleus top of the Northern Hemisphere table on points despite a loss to New Zealand in round one. Bonus points have been the difference.
Scotland — Made hard work of it — trailing 17-7 at half-time to a much-improved Fiji — but four second-half tries turned a scare into a comfortable 33-17 bonus-point win at Murrayfield, enough to leapfrog Ireland into second place in the Northern Hemisphere pool.
Australia — The result of the weekend outside Durban and Auckland: a 57-10 demolition of Italy, with lock Josh Canham becoming the first Wallaby forward to score a Test hat-trick. It ended a six-match losing streak and sent outgoing coach Joe Schmidt into retirement with a win, days before Les Kiss takes over.
Big Losers
Wales — A scoreless afternoon in Durban was as bad as it looked. Wales leave South Africa with one win from three, but the manner of the final defeat — no points, seven tries conceded — will sting more than the earlier, closer losses.
Ireland — The biggest name to fall. Andy Farrell’s understrength side had won both games so far in this competition but were outclassed at Eden Park, conceding six tries and never threatening a genuine comeback. They still top the Northern Hemisphere pool on points, but the performance raises real questions with a World Cup year approaching.
Italy — Winless through three rounds and now with a point difference of minus 94, easily the worst in the competition. Head coach Gonzalo Quesada was suspended for the Australia match under World Rugby’s new match-official abuse process, adding an off-field complication to an already difficult campaign.
Fiji — Also winless from three, though the manner of the Scotland defeat — leading 17-7 at half-time in front of a record Murrayfield-away crowd — offered genuine encouragement after a heavier loss to England the previous week.
Still to Come Tonight
One round 3 fixture remains: Argentina host England in Santiago del Estero (20:10 BST / 21:10 SAST kick-off), with both sides entering on one win and one loss. England have won five straight in this fixture, but Los Pumas are unbeaten at this ground against major nations and will fancy a repeat of their 2022 upset. The result won’t change South Africa’s position, but it will decide who finishes the July leg best-placed among the sides chasing the Springboks and All Blacks.
Updated Standings
Argentina and England’s match is not yet reflected below. All other Round 3 fixtures are complete.
Northern Hemisphere
| Pos | Team | P | W | L | PF | PA | Diff | Pts |
| 1 | France | 3 | 2 | 1 | 116 | 75 | +41 | 12 |
| 2 | Scotland | 3 | 2 | 1 | 108 | 97 | +11 | 11 |
| 3 | Ireland | 3 | 2 | 1 | 90 | 91 | -1 | 10 |
| 4= | Wales | 3 | 1 | 2 | 60 | 102 | -42 | 5 |
| 4= | England | 2 | 1 | 1 | 94 | 53 | +41 | 5 |
| 6 | Italy | 3 | 0 | 3 | 37 | 131 | -94 | 0 |
Southern Hemisphere
| Pos | Team | P | W | L | PF | PA | Diff | Pts |
| 1 | South Africa | 3 | 3 | 0 | 130 | 49 | +81 | 15 |
| 2 | New Zealand | 3 | 3 | 0 | 121 | 70 | +51 | 15 |
| 3 | Australia | 3 | 1 | 2 | 114 | 85 | +29 | 8 |
| 4 | Argentina | 2 | 1 | 1 | 73 | 68 | +5 | 6 |
| 5 | Japan | 3 | 1 | 2 | 62 | 88 | -26 | 4 |
| 6 | Fiji | 3 | 0 | 3 | 49 | 135 | -86 | 0 |
South Africa lead New Zealand on points difference alone. Note: bonus-point totals above are calculated from reported try counts and margins and may be adjusted slightly once World Rugby’s official round 3 figures are published.
What It Means Going Forward
Nothing here changes the shape of South Africa’s year, which — as our preview noted — is really about what comes next: Argentina away on 8 August, the four-Test “Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry” series against New Zealand, a trip to Australia, and the resumption of the Nations Championship in Europe in November. Saturday was the perfect way to close out the July leg. The far harder tests are still to come.
Broadcast: SuperSport (South Africa), ITVX (UK), S4C (Wales)
