France top power rankings ahead of Ireland

THE July fixtures concluded with two series wins for the north and two for the south. In terms of my power rankings I would have France in first, given what they achieved in the Six Nations, and Ireland in second as they have looked so organised and cohesive.

I would then place South Africa third, given that we have only played three Tests in the last eight months but still won the series against Wales, and then four and five would be England and New Zealand, with Australia rounding out the top six places.

New Zealand rugby is in turmoil because it’s in uncharted territory. I don’t know whether they would even consider a coaching change this close to a World Cup but there are numerous reports being written that Ian Foster must leave and Scott Robertson or Joe Schmidt must come in after that series loss to Ireland.

Whether NZR are willing to upset the apple cart before the Rugby Championship is highly unlikely. I would imagine they would stick to the status quo for the start of the competition at least.

The Springboks face a two-match duel against the All Blacks next month and I’m not sure if it’s a good or bad thing for us they lost to Ireland – but we can take confidence from the fact our big players stood up tall when they needed to against Wales.

Australia is an interesting one. They have blown hot and cold but remain dangerous in the background. I don’t want to discount the fact they can also perform very well on their day. They came up short in the last Test against England, but remain a darkhorse for the Rugby Championship.