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Five bold possible debutants for the All Blacks in 2026
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Snakes and ladders for All Blacks and Boks in World Rugby Rankings
By Ian Cameron
The All Blacks have it all to play for again in World Rugby Rankings as they head into another Rugby Championship weekend.
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Ian Foster’s side will leapfrog South Africa into third place if they avoid defeat against Los Pumas and the Springboks lose to Australia in Adelaide.
However, in defeat New Zealand will likewise drop to fifth for the second time this month, equalling their lowest ever position since the rankings were introduced in October 2003.
Foster named an unchanged starting line-up with the only change coming on the bench where Stephen Perofeta is poised for his test debut after replacing the injured Beauden Barrett.
The Springboks meanwhile will drop two places if they lose by more than 15 points and the All Blacks also beat Los Pumas.
Jacques Nienaber’s side cannot improve on third with victory as they would still trail France above them by at least 0.60 rating points.
The Boks made two changes to their starting line-up with Faf de Klerk returning at scrum-half and Warrick Gelant named on the wing in place of Jesse Kriel. Nienaber opted for a five-three split on the bench for the first time in 2022, after the tactic backfired last time out.
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The Wallabies will climb above Scotland into sixth place if they avoid defeat against the Boks and Argentina fail to beat the All Blacks. If both Australia and Argentina win then Los Pumas’ winning margin must be less than 15 points for Australia to climb to sixth. However, Dave Rennie’s side could drop to a new low of ninth in defeat.
Argentina cannot fall from their ninth place as they will lose only 0.03 rating points with a defeat by more than 15 points in NZ. Michael Cheika’s side will however jump two places – above Wales and Scotland – if they draw with the men in black.
A win by more than 15 points will lift Argentina to sixth, a position they have not occupied since September 2021. A smaller of margin would be sufficient if the Wallabies lose at home.
In Tier 2 rugby, Colombia will climb one place to 35th if they beat higher-ranked Brazil in the final match of the Sudamérica Rugby 3 Naciones 2022.
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Brazil provisionally climbed one place on the back of beating Paraguay 31-28 on Wednesday and will retain that 27th place with victory.
