Cape Town - Bragging rights in the first weekend of November internationals go to the Northern Hemisphere...
The past weekend saw the playing of no fewer than NINE matches involving teams from both hemispheres.
When all was said and told, the North emerged victorious in five matches, while the South had to console themselves with four - and narrow ones at that.
On Friday night, Canada eclipsed a game Namibia side 17-13 at the Parc Eirias in Colwyn Bay, Wales.
Saturday saw no fewer than eight matches, starting with the New Zealand Maori who broke Japanese hearts in the dying minutes with a try that gave them a 20-18 win.
Italy got the North back on the winning trail with an impressive 24-13 win - their first in 10 Tests - against a disappointing Samoa side.
The All Blacks balanced the equation with a 24-21 win over England which will go a long way to boosting their confidence some 10 months out from the 2015 Rugby World Cup.
The Wallabies fought back late to give new coach Michael Cheika a nervy 33-28 first Test victory in a thrilling try-fest against Wales at the Millennium Stadium.
France then routed Fiji 40-15 with SA-born duo Scott Spedding and Rory Kockott to the fore at the Stade Velodrome in Marseille.
Tonga then picked up a victory for the South in beating Georgia 23-9 at the Mikheil Meskhi Stadium in Tblisi.
Things then turned sour for the South when the world No 2-ranked Springboks crashed to a heavy 29-15 defeat to Ireland at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin, and Argentina continued to disappoint, this time in going down 41-31 to a rejuvenated Scotland side at Murrayfield.
How will things pan out next weekend when another eight 'North v South' clashes are scheduled?
Friday, November 14:
Canada v Samoa
French Barbarians v Namibia
Saturday, November 15:
Wales v Fiji
England v South Africa
Italy v Argentina
Tonga v USA
Scotland v New Zealand
France v Australia
The past weekend saw the playing of no fewer than NINE matches involving teams from both hemispheres.
When all was said and told, the North emerged victorious in five matches, while the South had to console themselves with four - and narrow ones at that.
On Friday night, Canada eclipsed a game Namibia side 17-13 at the Parc Eirias in Colwyn Bay, Wales.
Saturday saw no fewer than eight matches, starting with the New Zealand Maori who broke Japanese hearts in the dying minutes with a try that gave them a 20-18 win.
Italy got the North back on the winning trail with an impressive 24-13 win - their first in 10 Tests - against a disappointing Samoa side.
The All Blacks balanced the equation with a 24-21 win over England which will go a long way to boosting their confidence some 10 months out from the 2015 Rugby World Cup.
The Wallabies fought back late to give new coach Michael Cheika a nervy 33-28 first Test victory in a thrilling try-fest against Wales at the Millennium Stadium.
France then routed Fiji 40-15 with SA-born duo Scott Spedding and Rory Kockott to the fore at the Stade Velodrome in Marseille.
Tonga then picked up a victory for the South in beating Georgia 23-9 at the Mikheil Meskhi Stadium in Tblisi.
Things then turned sour for the South when the world No 2-ranked Springboks crashed to a heavy 29-15 defeat to Ireland at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin, and Argentina continued to disappoint, this time in going down 41-31 to a rejuvenated Scotland side at Murrayfield.
How will things pan out next weekend when another eight 'North v South' clashes are scheduled?
Friday, November 14:
Canada v Samoa
French Barbarians v Namibia
Saturday, November 15:
Wales v Fiji
England v South Africa
Italy v Argentina
Tonga v USA
Scotland v New Zealand
France v Australia