Nations Championship: Lessons from round two - and how the All Blacks stacked up

Tuesday, 14 July 2026

ANALYSIS: Will Jordan’s remarkable tryscoring feats headlined the All Blacks’ 47-17 victory over Italy in Wellington in the second round of the Nations Championship.

The win featured some sharp attacking play but there enough errors to keep the coaches on edge before Ireland’s visit to Eden Park on Saturday.

Here are the key topics that emerged across the weekend from another compelling round of tests.

Read more:

• Wellington comes up a winner as it welcomes the All Blacks with the appropriate fanfare

• Big calls for Rennie as Ireland threatens 32-year Fortress Eden Park

• All Blacks hooker Asafo Aumua leaves the dark days behind to reignite his promising career

• All Blacks player ratings: Debutants Josh Moorby and Anton Segner shine off the pine in Italy romp

All Blacks in good position to push for top spot

It’s easy to get lost in the details of each test and forget there is a bigger picture at play in the new Nations Championship.

To recap, the two teams that finish top of their respective Nations Championship ladders - northern and south - will contest the final in late November and will be crowned inaugural champions.

As it stands, the All Blacks and the Springboks both have 10 competition points in the south ladder.

South Africa have a slightly superior points difference, which might explain why All Blacks coach Dave Rennie was grumpy about not putting more points on Italy in the final quarter in Wellington.

But the All Blacks might enjoy a slight advantage when it comes to the draw. In the return legs in November, the Springboks have to face France and Ireland on the road - not an easy feat even for a team as formidable as South Africa.

Bonus points could even dictate the final standings, so the All Blacks’ new attacking blueprint could well be rewarded if they keep scoring tries at their current pace.

The All Blacks certainly look like finishing first or second on the southern ladder - which could set up a tough year-ending test against France or Ireland at Twickenham on the Nations Championship finals weekend.

Tonyball sidelined?

The Springboks again showed their depth in their 42-28 win against Scotland in Pretoria, with recalled Bulls halfback Embrose Papier scoring a superb individual try.

But the test also provided further evidence that the Springboks have returned to their old style this year, with Tony Brown’s influence limited.

The Springboks aren’t playing much rugby in their own half, preferring the box kick or midfield bomb as a way to create pressure.

And when they do get into opposition territory, they are sending wave after wave of big forwards to smash their way over the try line.

Ever the contrarian, Rassie Erasmus appears to be snubbing the adventurous play embraced by many other countries this year to place a bet on traditional Springboks rugby - and he hasn’t lost many bets in recent years.

Wallabies lost in transition

Incoming Wallabies coach Les Kiss was in the stands in Brisbane to watch outgoing Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt lose his ninth test in 10 games against France on Saturday.

The transition between the pair - Kiss takes over after the Wallabies play Italy in Perth on Saturday - is looking messier by the week.

France ran amok in the second half on Saturday on their way to a 42-26 victory and Kiss will inherit a team that has lost its way since a famous win against the Springboks last year.

New Zealand Rugby needs the Wallabies to be strong, but there is no end in sight to their woes.

France show why the Nations Championship has succeeded

In the aftermath of France’s win against the Wallabies, Les Bleus coach Fabien Galthie made it clear that he had little sympathy for the Wallabies and that the French meant business in the Nations Championship.

France midfielder Yoram Moefana even revealed that Les Bleus copped a halftime spray from Galthie in Brisbane after a lacklustre opening 40 minutes.

That ruthless attitude is great for the new competition. While coaches are still rotating their squads to build depth, there is a clear determination in both the north and south to finish on top of the ladder before the finals weekend in November.

It really has given more context to the July window - that’s not just a PR job by the Nations Championship organisers