As the Springbok side enjoys an ‘off season’ until the Incoming Series starts in July, there is plenty of attention being focused on the exploits in the Six Nations as Ireland look well-placed for a Grand Slam triumph.
Ireland have started the tournament with two bonus-point victories, and that will almost certainly be extended to three from three as they face embattled Wales this weekend.
Ireland face Wales in the first match in round three of the Six Nations this Saturday, with kick off at 16:15 (SA time), but they won’t be able to bank any rankings points based on the fact Wales are as low as 12th on the rankings table.
However, the last time Ireland were in action, they were able to improve their rankings tally from 90.78 to 91.65 after picking up a good win over Scotland to move to within just 1.13 rating points behind the Springboks.
England are sixth on the current rankings and next face Scotland on Saturday (kick off at 18:45), while fourth-ranked France play away to Italy on Sunday (17:00 kick off).
CURRENT WORLD RUGBY RANKINGS AS IRELAND CLOSE IN ON SPRINGBOKS:
| RANK | COUNTRY | POINTS |
| 1 | South Africa | 92.78 |
| 2 | Ireland | 91.65 |
| 3 | New Zealand | 90.36 |
| 4 | France | 87.19 |
| 5 | Argentina | 84.97 |
| 6 | England | 83.63 |
| 7 | Scotland | 83.57 |
| 8 | Australia | 81.52 |
| 9 | Fiji | 80.07 |
| 10 | Italy | 78.67 |
| 11 | Georgia | 73.85 |
| 12 | Wales | 73.75 |
| 13 | Japan | 72.95 |
| 14 | Samoa | 72.68 |
| 15 | USA | 70.02 |
| 16 | Portugal | 68.82 |
| 17 | Uruguay | 67.06 |
| 18 | Spain | 65.98 |
| 19 | Tonga | 65.46 |
| 20 | Romania | 63.01 |
SIX NATIONS 2025 FIXTURES
ROUND 3
Saturday, 22 February
Wales vs Ireland
England vs Scotland
Sunday, 23 February
Italy vs France
ROUND 4
Saturday, 8 March
Ireland vs France
Scotland vs Wales
Sunday, 9 March
England vs Italy
ROUND 5
Saturday, 15 March
Italy vs Ireland
Wales vs England
France vs Scotland
WHO DO YOU THINK WILL WIN THE TOURNAMENT THIS YEAR?
Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 0211.
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