Will Boks be rusty against hardened Wallabies?

THE form of the All Blacks and the Wallabies in their respective series Down Under raises the question of whether the Springboks will be undercooked in the Rugby Championship compared to their chief rivals.

- COMMENT MIKE GREENAWAY

The New Zealanders won a close-fought series against France 3-0; the Wallabies have been going hammer and tongs with the British and Irish Lions, while the Boks had comparatively low-key games against Italy and Georgia.

The other Rugby Championship team, the Pumas, had a disappointing start to their international season, losing a home series to an England side bereft of a host of players who are in Australia with the Lions.

Perhaps, more pertinently, the Springboks used their block of four matches for experimentation, with coach Rassie Erasmus making 10 changes per match and giving nearly 40 players game time. He also blooded newcomers such as front-rowers Asenathi Ntlabakanye (Lions), Marnus van der Merwe (Scarlets), Boan Venter (Edinburgh), Jan-Hendrik Wessels (Bulls), and utility forward Cobus Wiese (Bulls).