Just when you thought the Rugby Championship couldn’t twist anymore, the All Blacks pull a fast one, climbing past the Irish to snatch the second spot in the World Rugby rankings. Despite not clinching the Championship title, their recent 28-14 victory over Australia in Perth earned them an additional 0.74 ranking points, edging out Ireland by a hair. Meanwhile, the top-ranking Springboks managed to keep their crown with a nail-biting 29-27 win against Argentina at Twickenham, adding a modest 0.28 to their score.
While the Springboks are sitting pretty at the top with a score of 91.90, the All Blacks are hot on their heels with a cool 90.02, leaving Ireland to brood at 89.83. Rassie Erasmus, the ever-candid Springbok coach, couldn’t help but boast about his team's resilience.
"Boks showed massive fight,"
he declared, clearly proud of their skin-of-the-teeth victory.
The rest of the rankings saw little movement. France and England remain in the fourth and fifth spots, respectively, while Argentina and Australia, who felt the sting of their defeats, are stuck in sixth and seventh. The bottom three of the top ten are Scotland, Fiji, and Italy, with Scotland slightly nudging ahead to 81.57, Fiji at 81.16, and Italy lagging at 77.77.
For rugby aficionados, these shifts in rankings are more than just numbers. They hint at the brewing storms in upcoming matches and the potential for underdogs to rise or giants to fall. It’s a reminder that in the realm of rugby, glory is just one game away, and despair is always lurking by the sidelines.
As the teams rejig and strategize for the next showdowns, fans will be watching every pass, tackle, and try, knowing full well that the rankings are anything but set in stone. The question now isn't just who will come out on top, but who can cling to their spot in the ruthless tumble of international rugby.
Teams in the spotlight: - South Africa - New Zealand - Ireland - France - England - Argentina - Australia - Scotland - Fiji - Italy
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Just when you thought the Rugby Championship couldn’t twist anymore, the All Blacks pull a fast one, climbing past the Irish to snatch the second spot in the World Rugby rankings. Despite not clinching the Championship title, their recent 28-14 victory over Australia in Perth earned them an additional 0.74 ranking points, edging out Ireland by a hair. Meanwhile, the top-ranking Springboks managed to keep their crown with a nail-biting 29-27 win against Argentina at Twickenham, adding a modest 0.28 to their score.
While the Springboks are sitting pretty at the top with a score of 91.90, the All Blacks are hot on their heels with a cool 90.02, leaving Ireland to brood at 89.83. Rassie Erasmus, the ever-candid Springbok coach, couldn’t help but boast about his team's resilience.
"Boks showed massive fight,"
he declared, clearly proud of their skin-of-the-teeth victory.The rest of the rankings saw little movement. France and England remain in the fourth and fifth spots, respectively, while Argentina and Australia, who felt the sting of their defeats, are stuck in sixth and seventh. The bottom three of the top ten are Scotland, Fiji, and Italy, with Scotland slightly nudging ahead to 81.57, Fiji at 81.16, and Italy lagging at 77.77.
For rugby aficionados, these shifts in rankings are more than just numbers. They hint at the brewing storms in upcoming matches and the potential for underdogs to rise or giants to fall. It’s a reminder that in the realm of rugby, glory is just one game away, and despair is always lurking by the sidelines.
As the teams rejig and strategize for the next showdowns, fans will be watching every pass, tackle, and try, knowing full well that the rankings are anything but set in stone. The question now isn't just who will come out on top, but who can cling to their spot in the ruthless tumble of international rugby.
Teams in the spotlight: - South Africa - New Zealand - Ireland - France - England - Argentina - Australia - Scotland - Fiji - Italy