Bold predictions: England to end All Blacks’ Eden Park streak, Springboks to sweep the series
Split with New Zealand v England, Springboks v Ireland and Wallabies boss Joe Schmidt.
The mid-year Test window has officially arrived and with it comes some sensational series from across the world as the North collides with the South.
We have looked through the action ahead of us and made seven BOLD predictions that may or not happen but make for great discussion nonetheless.
England to end All Blacks’ unbeaten run at Eden Park
One of the biggest Test series getting underway in July is England travelling to All Blacks, with the two sides in slightly different spaces. The Red Rose had a stabilising period up until the Rugby World Cup under Steve Borthwick but have had a chance to grow and settle under their newish coach in this year’s Six Nations, which included a memorable win over Ireland.
The All Blacks come fresh off a World Cup final but have a change at the helm with Scott Robertson’s tenure set to begin. There is a lot of excitement around the greatest Super Rugby coach ever taking over New Zealand but it is hard to say how things will play out just yet.
What is certain is that the Test series will be tightly contested with the first game in Dunedin and the second at their fortress Eden Park, where they have not lost since 1994.
Now we did say these would be bold predictions and we are starting off with a wild one as we believe this English has a chance to pip the All Blacks in their own backyard. It won’t be easy but their win against Ireland earlier in the year shows that England has the capacity to slay another giant.
Wallabies to pile pressure on Warren Gatland who could face the sack
Sticking in Australasia we move to the Wallabies’ new era under respected coach Joe Schmidt, who in many ways was central to laying the foundations to Ireland’s success over the last decade as well as rescuing the All Blacks as an assistant halfway through the last cycle.
The challenge this time is even bigger; pick up Eddie Jones’ pieces. In some ways, it is an advantage because surely the only way is up from the 2023 World Cup. Make no mistake, Schmidt is a powerful rugby mind and the players know that so they will be keen to maximise the ‘clean slate’ for their own benefit as well as the team’s.
They face a struggling Wales who are in a really bad way with seven losses on the bounce. Warren Gatland has had to deal with a boatload of off-field issues which has partially caused a massive gap in experience and now with the old guard gone for the most part, he is left with young and raw talent.
The situation is not Gatland’s fault but at some point, heads will have to roll and it could happen at the hands of Schmidt. Expect the Wallabies to be a lot more organised with selection far less radical than in the Jones era and as a result, the Australians will gain confidence through the series and whitewash Wales.
One could argue that the Australian talent is not what it once was but the rise of their Super Rugby teams shows that Schmidt has enough to work with.
Springboks to clean sweep Ireland
The biggest series of the lot and one loaded with fiery comments already. Ireland have got the better of Springboks of late with the last time the South Africans beat their visitors being all the way back in 2016. So as you can imagine Rassie Erasmus and his players are desperate to defeat the Irish.
This is already evident as the coach named his first matchday squad that includes a ridiculous 20 World Cup winners. Erasmus is going all in. The venue choice suggests the same as they opted to play at altitude in the cauldron that is Loftus Versfeld before Kings Park the following week.
The Springboks players have for the most part been in good form this season and look well poised to make Ireland’s life hell in front of their hostile fans.
Ireland of course are an exceptional team, so well-drilled and meticulous in everything they do. The loss of Jamison Gibson-Park is the one personnel-based factor that tips the even match-up in the way of the Springboks. The scrum-half is always pure in his execution and his game management and decision-making has gone a long way in absorbing the impact of Johnny Sexton’s retirement. Craig Casey is likely to step in and is a brilliant player himself but the pressure will be on.
The determination of the South Africans to beat Ireland is massive and very much so aligned with their fans and we see them edging it in both games.
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Argentina v France – possibly the best tier one two-match series
Yes, we know it’s bold considering there is the All Blacks v England, Springboks v Ireland and Wallabies v Wales but we also sense there is something special loading between Los Pumas and Les Bleus.
Argentina began a new era under one of their legendary stars Felipe Contepomi, who coached in the Leinster structures for years before becoming assistant to Michael Cheika in the last World Cup cycle. The succession process was handled carefully, meaning Los Pumas should be ready to kick on from their fourth-placed finish at the World Cup.
They are missing some stars but how good is it to see a northern hemisphere side go for a series in South America! It will be tough for France in front of the tough Argentine crowds especially considering Les Bleus are taking a squad with 19 uncapped players. Of course, France boast a massive domestic and youth structure so these players are all very talented so it will be interesting to see how they get on.
In many ways, the excitement is because the series is laced with the unknown due to the factors described above. We call it to be a thriller with no winner. 1-1.
Italy to go winless in the Pacific
First and foremost, how amazing is it to see Italy travelling all the way to the Pacific to face Samoa and Tonga before ending the Test window in Japan. These are things we love to see and it will be very interesting to see how they go.
You have already seen our prediction and it comes with respect to a growing and emerging, Italy but the reality is that it is difficult for any team to travel to either Samoa or Tonga let alone both.
The nature of the Pacific style will mean it is guaranteed to be a brutal couple of weeks against the two proud countries. Throw in the local support and the intensity of the cultural experience and it is enough to rattle the cage. It is going to be really tough for Italy to then get up to the speed of Japan for their final Test.
Whatever way the results fall it will be a great tour for Italy and their players along with the management will only benefit.
Japan fail to progress under radical Eddie Jones
Jones has shown throughout his coaching career that he is a tactical mastermind but of late he has been guilty of being radical, as was the case with the Wallabies and even with Japan’s clash against England.
Now Jones will say his sweeping selection changes are aimed at growth and he is right, chances are they will pay off in the long run, but managing a Test side is also about balancing results and growth. Results bring momentum and confidence which in turn brings growth.
Maori All Blacks, Georgia and Italy await. In fairness, the make-up of the fixtures offers a great chance for development but we fear Jones may bite off more than he can chew when selecting his teams. Of course, how he goes about the selection based on the results the week before is a factor.
Jones has proven to be effective in the past with Japan but that may take longer this time around.
Three rookies to make telling impact
Finally, one of our favourite parts of the game is seeing new players on the Test scene in what is a culmination of their life’s work and training. In this window we expect three rookies in particular to excel.
Fin Baxter of England is a loosehead prop with a growing reputation in the Premiership for Harlequins and now the Red Rose having been capped earlier this year. He has the fortune of being the understudy to veteran Joe Marler which serves him well. Baxter just feels like a superstar in the making having captained England at the age group, showing he has a level head and the temperament to play at the highest level. He has been named on the bench against the All Blacks.
Speaking of the All Blacks, uncapped sensation Wallace Sititi is set to burst onto the Test scene this year. This might be limited to after the England series when they face Fiji but still, the number eight has shown tremendous power on both sides of the ball and off the bat has all the ingredients to shine at Test level. In some ways, it feels as if the All Blacks have just unearthed another back-row that could play 50+ Tests.
Lastly, Springbok Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu is already playing the role of Damian Willemse thanks to his ability to play 10, 12 and 15. Unlike his Stormers teammate, the 22-year-old is more of a fly-half and goal-kicker with a range of 55 to possibly even 60 metres from the tee. He looked far too comfortable in his debut against Wales and success feels inevitable.