The Springboks lost their top position in the World Rugby rankings after a 29-28 defeat to Argentina in the 2024 Rugby Championship. Tries from Argentina’s Mateo Carreras, Pablo Matera, Joel Sclavi, and Tomas Albornoz led to the historic win over the world champions. South Africa had a chance to secure victory when Manie Libbok lined up a late penalty, but his miss sealed the Springboks’ fate. The defeat caused South Africa to drop 1.81 rating points, allowing Ireland to reclaim the number one spot.
Meanwhile, Argentina gained 1.81 points and climbed to sixth place, overtaking Scotland. New Zealand strengthened their hold on third place with a close 31-28 win over Australia, who now share their all-time low ranking of 10th.
Fiji’s 41-17 win over Japan in the Pacific Nations Cup saw them move to ninth place, putting pressure on Italy, who are ranked eighth.
Leave a Reply