The four non-negotiables for the Wallabies’ first Test in South Africa

The Springboks are the back-to-back world champions for several reasons; they have enviable world-class depth, unnaturally large humans, and a team driven not by individual goals but a collective aspiration to uplift a nation.

It makes the ambitions of a sixth-ranked Wallabies side coming out of several years of turmoil in a bid to dethrone the kings of the world in their own backyard seem far-fetched and unattainable.

However, being the underdogs, being the side with everything to gain and nothing to lose during this two-week mini-series in South Africa will suit this group of Wallabies just fine.

Coming hot off a gruelling British and Irish Lions series, the Wallabies must at least trust in each other that when they do their roles well, they are a decent Test side, as proved by a Lions series with an aggregate score differential of only one point in the end.

So, while the Wallabies are the prey in the Republic to the apex predators of the Springboks, coach Joe Schmidt will nonetheless have devised a plan to take it to the champs.

Fixture

Rugby Championship

South Africa

22 - 38

Full-time

Australia

All Stats and Data

1. The Wallabies must kick contestables or out

You saw it against the Lions, the Wallabies successfully controlled momentum with contestable kicks and plugging the corners, winning the territory battle.

It was a pragmatic, tactical display in what was otherwise a flashy and exciting performance.

While the Wallabies are unlikely to be aided by the torrential rain and injuries to the Springboks’ locks as occurred in the Lions game, the Wallabies must nonetheless apply the same methodology.

However, a kick is only ever as good as its chase, and the Wallabies must be aware that for the first time in 2025, they will not have the fastest players on the field and must chase and contain fumbled contests accurately.

Springboks’ fullback Aphelele Fassi, and wingers Edwill van der Merwe and Kurt-Lee Arendse, are all lightning quick, and should they get on the outside of the Wallabies, very few could hope to catch them.

The high altitude will give the kicks of Nic White at No.9 and flyhalf James O’Connor plenty of extra distance on their boot, and the chasers of Max Jorgensen and Dylan Pietsch must be ready for the ball’s extra flight and hang-time.

O’Connor will be acutely aware that the Wallabies must continue to plug the corners and that the ball must go out.

New lineout coach, Tom Donnelly, will want to have a good first showing as part of the coaching set-up, and the Wallabies pack must build on the form they showed throughout the Lions’ series.

This is because the lineout is the set-piece that the Wallabies have a genuine opportunity to win, as opposed to the scrum where they look vulnerable.

2. Survive the scrum, and good things will come

The Wallabies are not beating this Springbok scrum, period.

Although the likes of Taniela Tupou, James Slipper, and Allan Alaalatoa were impressive against the Lions, the Springboks are at an entirely different level.

Ox Nche is the best loosehead in the world, and his front row partners in Wilco Louw and Malcom Marx would likely walk into most Test side 23s.

The Wallabies will be good for at least three scrum penalties here, but if they could limit the count to that, then the Wallabies’ front row will have done its job.

As mentioned above, the Wallabies must trust their lineout; trust their maul defence and therefore kick accordingly.

Surviving the scrum battle is as much about robbing the South Africans of a tried and tested weapon as it is about preventing the scoreboard from ticking over.

However, should the Wallabies start leaking penalties at every scrum, then the scoreline will get ugly very quickly, and they could find themselves playing with less than 15 men very quickly.

With Alaalatoa injured, the Wallabies’ scrummaging strength has taken a serious hit, but this is Test rugby; Zane Nonggorr and Angus Bell have an opportunity to rise to the occasion.

Schmidt and scrum coach Mike Cron will hope the young bulls do a job, but the coaches must have a plan for if they struggle as expected.

Head-to-Head

Last 5 Meetings

Wins

4

Draws

0

Wins

1

Average Points scored

32

18

First try wins

40%

Home team wins

40%

3. Target Mannie Libbok and Andre Esterhuizen all night long

If one were looking for any minuscule chink in the Springboks’ aggressive defence, it would be in between and around their No.10 and No. 12.

Libbok tackled at 68 per cent this year in the URC, and Esterhuizen at 82.9 per cent. Mannie plays for the Stormers, and Andre plays for the Sharks; the Wallabies should work to emphasise this relationship.

The pair have scarcely played together at the professional level since the World Cup, and although Esterhuizen is a man-mountain who gets great gainline ball in attack, he is not as mobile as the man he has replaced in defence.

O’Connor and Wallaby inside centre Len Ikitau must work to manoeuvre the big No.12 around, separating him from his elite centre partner, Jesse Kriel, who he hasn’t spent a great deal of time playing with in recent years either.

The Springboks are not immune to the issues of poor cohesion, and Libbok and Esterhuizen are hardly veterans when compared with the players they are stepping in for.

The Springboks backline has seven players from four separate clubs, Bulls, Sharks, Lions and Stormers.

Despite their apparent weak cohesion factors, the Wallabies must be aware that Grant Williams at No.9, Libbok and Fassi form a dangerous counter-attacking spine with a lot of cohesion.

If the Wallabies are to have a proper crack at the Springboks on their home turf, they are going to have to find this sore point and continue to push it.

4. Attitude is everything for the Wallabies

Rassie Erasmus has gone with a 5-3 split, having only Franco Mostert and Kwagga Smith as back-five cover, meaning three players in the starting pack will likely have to go 80 minutes at altitude.

It is ‘likely’, because Esterhuizen is big enough and has form to be able to slip into No.8, which could alleviate some of that pressure.

Nevertheless, the Wallabies will feel that, despite the thin air at Ellis Park, knowing that they have reserves and being match-fit after the Lions series, makes the fitness aspect fall in their favour. However, this won’t be enough; the forward pack must bring the abrasive edge that saw them stun the Lions in the second and third Tests if they are to have any hope of competing with the world champions.

But a mean streak and some push and shove won’t rock the Boks like it did the Lions; however, it is the bare minimum if the Wallabies want to be taken seriously by the South African players and crowd.

The likes of Will Skelton, Nick Frost, Tom Hooper, Bell, Jeremy Williams, and Nick Champion de Crespigny are all going to have to work tirelessly on and off the ball, as well as find the air in their lungs at altitude, to bring the fight to the Boks.

An unenviable task, but one that must be done if the Wallabies are to be any hope at Ellis Park.