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All Blacks players react following their loss in their Rugby Championship test match against South Africa in Wellington, New Zealand, Saturday, Sept. 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Marty Melville)
All Blacks, the most revered team in rugby union, suffered their worst thrashing in history when they were schooled 43-10 by South Africa in The Rugby Championship.
What’s more, the New Zealand national team, which sports the hallowed nickname, suffered the ignominy in their nation’s capital, Wellington. Six tries and 36 unanswered points in the second half proved the dominance of South Africa, whose team is called Springboks.
New Zealand’s previous heaviest defeat was a 35-7 reversal at the hands of the same team in Twickenham, England in 2023.
The All Blacks, who had beaten South Africa 24-17 a week ago, were shell-shocked at the turn of events, especially as they led 10-7 at half time.
“There’ll be some real discomfort this week,” New Zealand captain Scott Barrett said. “But I’m sure this team will use that to bounce forward. We’ve got the Bledisloe (contests against Australia’s Wallabies) ahead and a chance to respond.”
The Rugby Championship is an annual tournament contested by the teams from the four Southern Hemisphere teams of Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Argentina.
Barrett conceded that they were caught napping.
“The Springboks certainly showed up and took a real improvement from last week, and we just didn’t adjust. There’s a lot of areas where we can get better.”
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Coach Scott Robertson admitted that his team could not deal with the South African momentum once they got into rhythm.
“When they got rolling, they were relentless. We couldn’t buy a moment, and they punished us,” said the All Blacks handler. “They put pressure on us, and it worked.”
He stressed on the need for every player to look into the mirror before they attempt to bounce back.
“Firstly, (we need to) own it. Get some responsibility and find out what we need to fix. We’re not going to be chasing too many things. We’ve got to be clear about what matters most to us on and off the field. Then get a plan and look forward to this next game,” Robertson said.
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South African captain Siya Kolisi – the first black man to hold the position – who has led his country to two successive World Cup titles – lauded his team for the achievement.
“I give credit to my boys – we didn’t give up. And to the coach (Rassie Erasmus) as well,” Kolisi said. “We played fearlessly. We didn’t want to hold back. We knew what we needed to do and we believed in ourselves – that was the most important thing out there.”
Though South Africa has won more World Cup titles – four to three in the 10 editions so far – than New Zealand, the latter is cherished and feared for their powerful, flowing style of play.
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
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