This past weekend, South African sports lovers found themselves tasked with swallowing a bitter pill as not one, but three of our national sports codes, cricket, Dricus du Plessis (UFC), and rugby, suffered heavy defeats on the international stage.
The reigning rugby World Cup champions, the Springboks, visited the iconic Emirates Airline Park (formerly known as Ellis Park) in Johannesburg, where they kicked off this year’s rugby championship tournament with high hopes of defending their trophy.
While the game started with the hosts establishing their dominance with an early 22-0 lead in the first 25 minutes of the game, things quickly spiraled downward in the second half. Missed lineouts, a struggling set piece, and individual errors allowed the Australians back into the game and ultimately resulted in a 38 – 22 defeat in the city of gold.
The win meant much to the opposition, who had been struggling to find their identity in recent years. Following the final whistle, the team ran down the tunnel to celebrate the win by playing one of our unofficial rugby anthems, Sister Bethina.
Watch:
@athletekingdm Playing SA’s National Anthem 👀 | #fyp #rugby #springboks #australiarugby ♬ original sound – Athlete Kingdom
Taking to X (formerly Twitter) they shared a post thanking the hosts for their awesome sportsmanship ahead of their second test which will take place in Cape Town this weekend.
@athletekingdm Playing SA’s National Anthem 👀 | #fyp #rugby #springboks #australiarugby ♬ original sound – Athlete Kingdom
Meanwhile, heartbroken Bok fans who travelled from various parts of the country to watch the game live, as well as on television took their thoughts to social media platforms.
Something feels really off! The last half seemed as though weren’t even trying to stop or run after them, almost giving up if they had the ball. Weird vibes!
— Natalie Brebner (@BrebnerNat43788) August 16, 2025
I’m really shocked 😲. Springboks started well and then played poorly for the rest of the game. What just happened?
— JMac (@JDMacUSA) August 16, 2025
Poor game by the Boks, but at least they showed what they capable of in the first 20 minutes. Hopefully they fix things in the next match.
— JN (@UnityInSA) August 16, 2025
Furthermore, the defeat also saw the Springboks lose their no.1 spot in the World Rugby rankings by slipping down to third behind New Zealand (1st) and Ireland (2nd).
Also see: 3 Young stars who could lead the Springboks in the future
