The scars from the Springboks’ record win over New Zealand last year are still fresh in the All Blacks camp.
Flyhalf Beauden Barrett says the memory of the heavy defeat continues to hang over the team months later.
South Africa stunned the All Blacks 43-10 in Wellington in the Rugby Championship – the biggest victory the Springboks have ever recorded over their fiercest rivals.
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For the players involved, the aftermath was unforgettable.
“There is a deep feeling of pain, almost like a deathly silence and a look that we (as players) gave each other after what we had experienced,” Barrett said on the Devlin Sports Podcast Network.
“The feeling in the dressing room was one of mourning. We feel those kinds of disappointing defeats more (than the supporters). There is for every player perhaps a specific match that was more disappointing, but as a player you can clearly remember the heavy feeling in the dressing room from those defeats that hurt the most.”
The defeat eclipsed South Africa’s previous record victory over New Zealand – the famous 35-7 thumping at Twickenham before the 2023 Rugby World Cup.
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Barrett now hopes the All Blacks will have the chance to respond when the two giants meet again later this year in the Greatest Rivalry tour.
New Zealand will be in South Africa between August and September, with the old foes set to clash in three Tests on South African soil before a fourth meeting in the United States.
Whether Barrett will be part of that squad remains to be seen, with new All Blacks coach Dave Rennie set to decide on his selections.
Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry is reignited.
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— SA Rugby magazine (@SARugbymag) October 16, 2025
Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry tour fixtures
Friday, 7 August: vs Stormers, Cape Town Stadium, Cape Town
Tuesday, 11 August: vs Sharks, Kings Park, Durban
Saturday, 15 August: vs Vodacom Bulls, Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
Saturday, 22 August: vs Springboks, Ellis Park, Johannesburg
Tuesday, 25 August: vs Lions, Ellis Park, Johannesburg
Saturday, 29 August: vs Springboks, Cape Town Stadium, Cape Town
Saturday, 5 September: vs Springboks, FNB Stadium, Johannesburg
Saturday 12 September: vs Springboks, M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore
Photo: Joe Allison/Getty Images
The post Barrett: Bok hiding still hurts appeared first on SA Rugby magazine.
The scars from the Springboks’ record win over New Zealand last year are still fresh in the All Blacks camp.
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