All Blacks coach makes Springboks 'exploration' prediction for series finale
All Blacks assistant coach Mike Blair anticipates the Springboks may shift to a more expansive attacking strategy in the final Test match of their series. Despite recent success with a conservative, power-based game plan, Blair suggests the South African team has the personnel to diversify their approach.
Why it matters
This match represents a high-stakes conclusion to a major international rugby rivalry, highlighting tactical evolution in professional sports.
Springbok Kurt-Lee Arendse is tackled by All Black Josh Moorby with an inset of Mike Blair.
All Blacks assistant coach Mike Blair predicts that the Springboks will shake up their game plan in the final Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry Test match in Baltimore.
Rassie Erasmus’ men went 2-1 up in the series by defeating New Zealand at the FNB Stadium in Soweto last week, with the Boks reverting to a more conservative style of play for the fixtures against their fiercest rivals.
Tony Brown’s arrival in the coaching team after the 2023 Rugby World Cup saw the men in Green and Gold play more expansively in attack over the past two years, but that has been largely parked in the last three Tests.
Instead, they have backed their more traditional strengths, leaning more and more into their power, kicking and set-piece prowess.
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