Ten days out from the first Test of Rugby's Greatest Rivalry at Ellis Park, the Springbok selection debate has narrowed to two jerseys and one tactic, and the people arguing about them do not agree.
Victor Matfield, the former South Africa captain, used his Rugby Rivals podcast this week to defend Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu after a rusty return in the 17-10 win over Argentina in Buenos Aires. The fly-half had not played for six weeks before that Test, having missed the Nations Championship series in July with an ankle injury.
"I actually went through the game again last night and I don't think he played that badly," Matfield said. "I think our kicking game was off, especially our high bombs were just too far. We always talk nowadays when you kick those balls, rather too short and too far, because otherwise you just give the ball away."
Matfield also flagged the context. "He was physical. He still went for it. Remember, he hasn't played for six weeks, so there's another two weeks for him to get into training. You couldn't expect him to be at his best after not playing for four to five weeks. So I thought he did what was needed, got game time under the belt."
He was warm on Handre Pollard's cameo, too. "I actually enjoyed when Handre came on, moved into 15, and Handre just brought that calmness to the team as well that we know he will bring. It was a difficult game for South Africa."
Then came the split. Matfield's own team sheet does not match the one he expects Rassie Erasmus to produce.
"I'll still pick Sacha. I think he's fantastic and I would like to have Handre on the bench, but knowing Rassie, I think he's going to start with Manie and probably put Sacha on the bench."
Libbok started against England in July in what has been the closest thing to a full-strength Springbok XV this year, and stayed behind in South Africa with the coaching group rather than travelling to Argentina.
At No.8, Erasmus has been less willing to entertain a debate at all. Cameron Hanekom took man of the match in Buenos Aires in only his second appearance of the year after missing all of 2025 injured, and with incumbent Jasper Wiese held back in South Africa, the obvious question followed.
"It doesn't open up, Jasper Wiese is clearly the number one number eight," Erasmus said. "Cameron has now really played well against an Argentinian team that has knocked us over a few times, so it's lekka to have another option there."
The coach then listed the alternatives, which is its own kind of answer. "I thought Elrigh [Louw] did well at stages. Obviously, we have Pieter-Steph [du Toit], Paul de Villiers and Siya [Kolisi] is coming back. Andre [Esterhuizen] can play at eight and Marco's [van Staden] played at eight for us, so it's lekka to have those options."
On the 24-year-old himself, Erasmus was encouraging without promising anything. "We'll try and pick the 23 that we think can beat New Zealand but Cameron is definitely starting to settle nicely in the team, he's starting to be calm in understanding what we're trying to do, so I think he's getting better every game."
Kolisi remains in doubt with a hamstring complaint, with Stormers flanker Deon Fourie called into the squad. Erasmus said the picture will only clear closer to kick-off: "In the next two weeks we will have to look at our injuries and then we will pick the team that we hope can try and beat New Zealand in the first Test match."
The third argument is about the bench itself. Steve Hansen, who coached the All Blacks for eight years, pointed to the Stormers' tour opener, where a six-two split unravelled when halfbacks Imad Khan and Dewaldt Duvenage were both injured, leaving John Dobson with Wandisile Simelane as his only specialist back replacement.
"The 6-2 split didn't work in favour of the South Africans this time. They roll the dice every time they do it, and they were unlucky in that they got two players injured in the same position," Hansen said on the Rugby Unity podcast.
He was careful not to hand anyone an excuse. "I hear the commentators, 'it's changed the course of the game', but you know that before you go in, I don't think you can use it as an excuse for anything. If you're going to play a 6-2 split, you've got to go through all the scenarios. They would have gone through them all, but it did for me show that you can be vulnerable if things don't go the way you want them to go."
Whether that changes anyone's mind is the interesting part. "That's the risk you take, whoever's doing it, it will be interesting to see if it changes people's minds or if they keep doing it and are prepared to take the risk," Hansen said.
Dave Rennie, for his part, has already signalled the All Blacks are willing to experiment with the same split during the provincial leg of the tour, joking in Auckland before the Ireland Test that assistant Neil Barnes would be less enthusiastic about a four-four bench. "We've got the versatility. We think we can do that," Rennie said.
The first Test is at Ellis Park on 22 August.
