Ireland poised to prey on Bok defeat

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The Springboks could face a notable drop in the World Rugby standings if the top-ranked team lose to Los Pumas in Argentina on Saturday.

South Africa have already won the Freedom Cup and Nelson Mandela Challenge Plate in 2024, and victory in Santiago del Estero will mark the first time in the Rugby Championship's history that the Boks win six consecutive matches.

World Rugby has revealed the rankings permutations ahead of the Pacific Nations Cup and Rugby Championship clashes this week, and the world champions could extend their advantage over Ireland at the top of the global rankings if they beat Los Pumas by more than 15 points.

However, a first defeat of the competition would see the Irish replace Rassie Erasmus' charges at the summit.

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The South Africans, though, cannot fall any lower than second as the third-placed All Blacks won't overtake their arch-rivals even if they thump the Wallabies by more than 15 points in the opening Bledisloe Cup clash of the year in Sydney.

New Zealand could drop to fourth if beaten by Australia, the Kiwis potentially hitting their lowest-ever ranking. A win for Argentina against the Boks would lift Felipe Contepomi's men back to sixth, ahead of Scotland.

Australia will climb above Italy into eighth if they avoid defeat. A loss, though, opens the door for Fiji to break into the top 10 if they win the Pacific Nations Cup against Japan.

Meanwhile, the Brave Blossoms could jump to 12th if they win, while Samoa risks dropping below Portugal with a heavy loss to the USA. The Eagles could rise two to three places but even with a heavy defeat, they will remain 19th.

Photo: @Springboks/Twitter

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