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Boks v All Blacks: What rivalry?

Cape Town - After Saturday’s humiliating 41-13 loss, the Springboks’ rivalry with the All Blacks is on the wane.

The Kiwis are always quick to express their respect for the Springboks - the nation with the best Test record against them.

In 92 Tests between the countries, the New Zealanders have won 54 compared to South Africa’s 35, with three games ending in draws.

It’s a 59% win-ratio, compared to 38% for South Africa.

For South Africa, that's pretty decent when one takes a look at New Zealand's record against other top Test-playing nations.

The Wallabies are the second most successful Test team against the All Blacks with a 27% win-ratio. They have won 42 of 157 matches played against the Kiwis, with seven matches ending in draws.

Next in line are France, who have won 12 of 56 Tests against New Zealand for a win-ratio of 21%.

England, interestingly, have won only seven of 40 Tests against New Zealand - 17.5%, while Wales (3 wins out of 33 - 0.09%) also have a torrid record against the Kiwis.

Ireland (0-27, 1 draw), Scotland (0-28, 2 draws) and Argentina (0-22, 1 draw) have never beaten the All Blacks.

For this reason, die-hard Springbok fans often gloat about their team being the ‘best of the rest’ in world rugby, but quite frankly, it’s a record South Africans should not be proud of.

Mainly because it's a winning percentage that keeps decreasing year after year.

It will perhaps come as a surprise to some that when Francois Pienaar’s charges won the 1995 Rugby World Cup final by beating the All Blacks 15-12, the Boks held a positive 21-18 win-loss record against the All Blacks!

Rugby turned professional and since then, the All Blacks have won 36 matches compared to a meagre 14 by South Africa. 

Saturday’s lopsided 28-point margin of victory also tied the third biggest in the history of Tests between the two nations.

For South Africa, it’s a worrying sign of a rivalry that is becoming far too one-sided.

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