Hawies expects tougher Stormers test

Boland coach Hawies Fourie believes his side will have to produce an even better performance if they’re to make it back-to-back Currie Cup victories.

Having kicked off their campaign with a 24-10 win over the Vodacom Bulls XV in Wellington on Sunday, the Cavaliers now turn their attention to another big challenge against a Stormers XXIII that claimed a dramatic 25-19 victory over Griquas in Cape Town on Friday night.

Fourie has already begun his homework ahead of Sunday’s Cape derby. forumteam.blog

“I was busy with renovations at the stadium, so I didn’t watch the Stormers game live, but I downloaded the match last night and looked at it today [Sunday],” he told Rugby365.

“We will make our plans. There are no obvious weaknesses; they played quite well against Griquas.”

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The Boland coach believes the Stormers will arrive full of confidence after toppling the defending champions and expects a vastly different challenge to the one his side faced in a recent warm-up fixture.

“We played the Stormers in a friendly and it was a totally different game. It was the same players, but it was a different effort [against Griquas] from the game they played against us two weeks ago.

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“We know they’ll be up for it. They’ll take a lot of confidence from the win against Griquas, who are not easy to beat … ask us – we’ve lost against them five or six times in the past three years.”

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Photo: Ashley Vlotman/Gallo Images

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L’Espagne est entrée un peu plus dans la légende du football mondial ce dimanche au MetLife Stadium.

En battant l’Argentine en finale de la Coupe du Monde 2026, la Roja décroche son deuxième titre mondial et rejoint le cercle des nations doubles championnes du monde, aux côtés de la France et de l’Uruguay.

Dix-huit ans après son premier sacre

Dix-huit ans après son unique sacre en Afrique du Sud, en 2010, l’Espagne retrouve les sommets du football mondial.

Portée par une génération talentueuse, un collectif parfaitement huilé et un jeu de possession redevenu sa marque de fabrique, la Roja a mis fin à seize années d’attente. Ce deuxième titre confirme la capacité du football espagnol à se réinventer sans renier son identité.

Un cercle très fermé
Grâce à ce nouveau

sacre, l’Espagne rejoint la France, sacrée en 1998 et 2018, ainsi que l’Uruguay, vainqueur en 1930 et 1950, parmi les nations comptant deux Coupes du monde. Seuls le Brésil (5), l’Allemagne (4) et l’Italie (4) affichent désormais un palmarès plus riche.

Une nouvelle ère pour la Roja

Ce titre mondial pourrait marquer le début d’une nouvelle dynastie. Avec un effectif jeune, un projet de jeu clairement défini et une génération déjà au sommet, l’Espagne s’installe durablement parmi les grandes puissances du football mondial. Après avoir rejoint le cercle des doubles champions du monde, la Roja peut désormais nourrir l’ambition de viser encore plus haut.

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Nick Mallett believes the All Blacks have borrowed a page from the Springboks’ playbook under Dave Rennie ahead of next month’s four-Test showdown.

After watching New Zealand complete an unbeaten home Nations Championship campaign, Mallett says the biggest change has been the All Blacks’ willingness to attack through the middle before spreading the ball wide – an approach long associated with the Springboks.

“I must give Dave Rennie credit,” the former Bok coach said on the Talking Boks podcast. “I really thought he got his team to be so much more direct in terms of their ball-carriers. They really did carry well [against Ireland].

“It seems as though they’re following the South African template, which is very much go down the middle of the field prior to going out wide.”

RENNIE: Boks a different beast

The comments come as anticipation builds for Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry, with South Africa and New Zealand emerging as the standout teams from the opening half of the Nations Championship.

While impressed by the All Blacks’ evolution, Mallett believes the Boks remain well equipped to meet the challenge thanks to the depth Rassie Erasmus has built in the pack.

“We’ve done really well in expanding our strength and depth [in the forward pack],” he said. “It seems any pack we put on the field can take on any team in the world – even the All Blacks.”

STATE OF NATIONS CHAMPIONSHIP: Boks, Les Bleus on top

There is, however, one area that concerns the former Bok coach.

With Lood de Jager and Franco Mostert managing injuries, Mallett believes the second row is the only position where South Africa could be vulnerable if their injury list grows.

“Lock is a problem,” he said. “If there is a problem against Argentina like Lood carrying an injury, Mostert carrying an injury, that could be a problem for us.

“We’ve got Ruan Nortjé who’s very athletic, Cobus Wiese who can do a job and Ruben van Heerden who can do a job. It would be the one position I’d be a bit nervous of if there are any more injuries than there are at the moment.”

WORLD RANKINGS: All Blacks close gap on Boks

Photo: Steve Haag/Gallo Images

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