South Africa’s Strong Start to the 2023 Rugby World Cup – Can They Go All the Way?

The Springboks have already gotten off to a strong start at the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France, beating Scotland in their opening game of the tournament on Sunday, September 10th.

Their next game is against Romania on September 17th. The question being asked here is, can the Springboks go all the way this year and win the tournament? Let’s take a closer look right here.

How did the Springboks look in their first 2023 Rugby World Cup match?

The Springboks beat Scotland 18-3 in their opening group stage match and got off to a solid start in the first half, although the current reigning champions were only 6-3 up against Scotland at the halfway mark, thanks to separate tries from Kurt-Lee Arendse and Pieter-Steph Du Toit.

It was a physical game from the start, and Scotland were awarded two early penalties. Scotland’s Finn Russell also narrowly avoided a trip to the sin bin in the first half. The talk of the game was when South Africa’s Manie Libbok performed a brilliant no-look cross-kick pass straight into the arms of Arendse, who put them even further into the lead.

They looked the better side throughout the game, although Scotland worked hard, and nothing can be taken away from them. In the end, they just weren’t strong or fast enough to ever be a serious threat to South Africa. The South African players, fans, and the manager will be happy with the performance and result and will be looking to keep the momentum going forward.

Who are the favourites to win the 2023 Rugby World Cup?

South Africa were the odds-on favourite team to win the 2023 Rugby World Cup before it started, and they are still the odds-on favourite. They are currently priced, on average, at around 5/2 in the fractional odds format at trusted online bookmakers, such as the official 10bet website.

These odds mean that the probability rate of South Africa going on to win the tournament outright is around 28.60%. In American/moneyline odds, 5/2 is +25, and in decimal odds, it’s 3.50.

What are the odds for the other teams?

There are 20 teams in the 2023 Rugby World Cup group stages, and the odds for some of these other teams to win the tournament outright are as follows:

• France – second odds-on favourite to win the tournament at 3/1 (25% implied probability rate)
• Ireland – 9/2 (18.20%)
• New Zealand – 9/2 (18.20%)
• England 9/1 (10.00%)
• Australia 14/1 (6.7%)

You then have Wales (25/1), Argentina (50/1), Scotland (50/1), and Fiji (80/1). Other teams competing at this year’s tournament are Italy, Japan, Samoa, Tonga, Georgia, Chile, Namibia, Portugal, Romania, and Uruguay.

Which group is South Africa in?

South Africa are in group/pool B, which has been called ‘the group of death.’ The other teams in the same group as South Africa are Scotland, Ireland, Tonga, and Romania. Ireland are currently at the top of the group after beating Romania 82-8 on September 9th.

Tonga have yet to play their first group match and find themselves in mid-table. In fourth place are Scotland, and at the bottom of the group are Romania.

Upcoming fixtures

On Sunday, September 17th, the Springboks face Romania at the Nouveau Stade de Bordeaux, and then on Saturday, September 23rd, they place Ireland at the iconic Stade de France. Their next group stage match is on October 1st at the Stade Velodrome against Tonga.

Who gave the best performance against Scotland?

The standout player of the match by a distance was Pieter-Steph du Toit. He never backed out of a tackle and had a solid performance throughout. He can be a key player who can help South Africa go all the way this year, and fans will be hoping he can perform as well as he did against Scotland in their upcoming games.

Two of the other star players who out-performed most other players on the pitch were Damian Willemse and Kurt-Lee Arendse. Willemse was solid at the back in a fullback position and extremely creative on the ball. It wasn’t his best-ever performance, but he definitely showed his worth, and the Springboks will be hoping he doesn’t get injured.

Arendse was impressive in defence and scored a memorable try. Despite his relatively small stature, he was able to keep Scotland’s biggest players at bay all game.

Jesse Kriel, Damian de Allende, Cheslin Kolbe, Manie Libbok, Trevor Nyakane, Ox Nche, Faf de Klerk, and Franco Mostert also put in impressive displays. In fact, none of the players can be knocked for their performance. There’s a good chance South Africa can easily go all the way with this current team.

Photo cred: Facebook / Springboks