Australia vs South Africa Predictions - South Africa to struggle down under

Ralph Staniforth

Editor

Last updated: 07 Aug 2024

Listen

Ralph Staniforth 07 Aug 2024

Share this article

Springboks favored, lost only to Ireland in last 13 matches.
Australia's strong home record against South Africa; 7 wins in last 9 matches.
Joe Schmidt's Wallabies showing promise with 3 recent wins.

Expired

Australia vs south africa rugby championship 2023

Australia can surprise at home against the Springboks (Getty Images)

Australia vs South Africa Preview

The Springboks are favourites and rightly so having only lost to Ireland (twice) in their last 13 matches. However, the South Africans have only won one of their last nine games in Australia, so that record may haunt them.

Australia vs South Africa Preview
Head to Head
Australia Form
Australia Injuries & Team News
South Africa Form
South Africa Injuries & Team News

Australia have won 7 of their last 9 home matches against South Africa.
Australia have won their last 3 matches.
South Africa have won 11 of their last 13 matches.
South Africa won their last away match against Australia.

Head to Head

South Africa have been victorious in their last two fixtures against Australia, one of which was away from home. However, that was their only away success against the Aussies in their last nine attempts.

Australia Form

Australia had a torrid 2023 and will be looking for vast improvement under the guidance of Joe Schmidt in 2024. They have already won their three matches under the former Irish coach.

The Wallabies were too good for Wales on home soil, winning the series 2-0 before a second-string side beat Georgia 40-29 in mid-July at home. While the results have been acceptable, the truth is both Australia and Wales are in a rebuilding phase, so there needs to be context on that series win.

Last year, the Aussies finished bottom of the Rugby Championship and were knocked out of the group stages of the World Cup. There has to be some acceptance that drastic change won’t happen within a few months.

Australia Injuries & Team News

Schmidt will be under pressure from the get-go as Australian coach, but he will continue trying different combinations whilst also bringing youngsters through. Expect a similar lineup to the one that faced Wales in the second Test.

South Africa Form

South African rugby is in a great place at the moment, thanks mainly to the Springboks back-to-back Rugby World Cup titles. However, they have not won the Rugby Championship since 2019 and will want to change the script in 2024.

The Springboks drew their home series 1-1 against Ireland, the two top ranked sides in the world. They followed it up with a dominant victory over Portugal.

As Rassie Erasmus has shown since taking charge in 2017, he will regularly make changes to his side between World Cup’s. He has already said that he wants to evolve the teams gameplan as well as bring through some new players.

South Africa Injuries & Team News

The Springboks are missing some experienced players through injury and suspension but have also kept a few players out. They have selected an exciting side though, one that has raised some eyebrows.

Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu starts at flyhalf with Handre Pollard taking a spot on the bench. There is also noFaf de Klerk with Cobus Reinach starting and Grant Williams on the bench. Elrigh Clouw gets a start at eighthman.

Verdict

Australia v South Africa

Australia are backed to get inside nine points and given their good home record against South Africa, an upset win is not off the table.

Australia +9

Handicap

@-109.89 - 3 Units

R5,000 bonus

with bonus code NEWBONUS

18+ only. T&Cs apply. New customers only. Email must be verified prior to participation. Min deposit R50. Max bonus amount R5000. Exclusive offer when you use the bet.co.za promo code NEWBONUS.

Bet at Bet.co.za

Australia Win

Full Time Result

@230.00 - 1 Unit

100% up to R5,000 + 50 spins

Use promo code NEWBONUS

Bet at TicTacBets