Boks get favourable draw

The Springboks will face the All Blacks at home in a condensed Rugby Championship in 2015.

The competition sees teams face each other just once, with the winner being crowned on 8 August, just over a month before the World Cup gets underway in England. South Africa will also compete in a stand-alone fixture against Argentina following the conclusion of the tournament as they finalise preparations for the World Cup.

Argentina and New Zealand will get the competition underway in Christchurch on Friday, 17 July, with the Boks facing Australia the following day.

Heyneke Meyer's team will then return to South Africa for home matches against New Zealand and Argentina.

The Boks have finished second in the annual competition for the last two years and have not won the competition since the change to the current format, with their last title coming back in 2009.

The venues for the matches in South Africa and Argentina have yet to be confirmed.

Round 1
Friday, 17 July: New Zealand vs Argentina – AMI Stadium, Christchurch
Saturday, 18 July: Australia vs South Africa – Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane

Round 2
Saturday, 25 July: South Africa vs New Zealand – Venue TBC
Saturday, 25 July: Argentina vs Australia – Venue TBC

Round 3
Saturday, 8 August: Australia vs New Zealand – ANZ Stadium, Sydney
Saturday, 8 August: South Africa vs Argentina – Venue TBC

Additional week (not for competition points)
Saturday, 15 August: New Zealand vs Australia – Eden Park, Auckland
Saturday, 15 August: Argentina vs South Africa – Venue TBC

Photo: Gavin Barker/BackpagePix