Boks to take All Blacks off the beaten track

The All Blacks could face the world champion Springboks in the test rugby outpost of Nelspruit this year.

Reports in South Africa suggest that the city close to the Mozambique border could host the Rugby Championship test on September 26.

It seems a strange choice given the hype of the occasion – the first test between rugby’s biggest rivals since the Boks won the World Cup in Japan. The All Blacks were the only team to beat the Springboks at last year’s World Cup with a dominant pool stage performance.

Nelspruit’s Mbombela Stadium was built for the 2010 Fifa World Cup. The All Whites famously drew 1-1 with Italy at the venue during that World Cup.

The reports said the Springboks were likely to play Argentina at Ellis Park in Johannesburg on August 8 and Australia at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria on September 19. Those two rugby strongholds hold 62,000 and 52,000 respectively.

South Africa’s director of rugby Rassie Erasmus appears keen to maximise the altitude advantage by having all three Rugby Championship tests played on the high veldt this year.

The Springboks have previously used the Nelspruit ground for tests though none of the magnitude of an All Blacks fixture.

They recorded wins there against Scotland (2013), Wales (2014) and Argentina (2016).

New Zealand Rugby is cashing in on the All Blacks v South Africa rivalry, setting down the home Rugby Championship fixture for the country’s biggest ground, Auckland’s Eden Park, on September 5.

The All Blacks’ other home Rugby Championship tests are against Australia in Wellington on August 15 and Argentina in Hamilton on August 29.