Less than a year after New Zealand ended South Africa’s World Cup run, the Springbok Women will get a fresh measure of progress when they host the Black Ferns at FNB Stadium on Saturday. The match offers a home crowd the chance to see how far Catha Jacobs and her team have come since that quarter-final in Exeter.
From Exeter to Johannesburg: growth on display
New Zealand beat South Africa 48-11 in the quarter-finals last September, a result that still sits with some players. For Catha Jacobs — poised to win her 31st Test cap — the memory of that evening is vivid but no longer defining.
“We left the field frustrated after the quarter-final clash against the Black Ferns,” Jacobs said. “It was great to have made the last eight for the first time ever and even better to be 10-10 at half-time. But the second half did not go our way.”
What follows in the current campaign, Jacobs said, is evidence of tangible improvement. South Africa arrive on home soil after a drawn series against the United States and a convincing 2-0 sweep of Fiji away from home. Those results, and the lessons taken from Exeter, have helped sharpen belief.
Stronger, more varied and battle-ready
Jacobs emphasised that the Springbok Women will not abandon their traditional strengths: physicality and power in the first phase. But she said the side has “added some variety in our play”, suggesting an evolution in attack and tactical nuance that could trouble the Black Ferns.
One of the players most vocal about personal and team growth is lock Vainah Ubisi. The 23-year-old arrived at the World Cup recovering from a knee injury and said she could not make the impact she wanted in England, coming off the bench in that quarter-final defeat. This time she is fully fit and on form.
“At the World Cup, they did not see the best of me,” Ubisi said. “My Black Ferns experience was not the greatest... but now, less than a year later, I can redeem that. I almost feel I will meet them on my terms this time.”
Ubisi’s recent scoring run — she has crossed the whitewash in each of South Africa’s last three Tests (against the USA and twice against Fiji) — has underpinned a personal confidence that translates into the Bok Women’s “engine room”.
Recent form and context
The immediate backdrop to Saturday’s fixture can be summarised:
- World Cup quarter-final: Black Ferns 48–11 Springbok Women (Exeter, last September)
- Recent series: drawn series with the United States
- Touring form: 2–0 series win in Fiji
| Opponent | Result |
|---|---|
| New Zealand (World Cup) | Lost 48–11 |
| United States | Series drawn |
| Fiji | Won 2–0 |
That mix of results shows both progress and the scale of the challenge. The Black Ferns remain a benchmark in women’s rugby; for South Africa, the task is to close the gap while retaining the identity that earned them a historic World Cup quarter-final place.
What to watch at FNB
Fans should keep an eye on a few key areas where the Springbok Women aim to show improvement:
- Set-piece solidity and how the pack competes with New Zealand’s physical forward play.
- Variation in attack beyond the gain-line — accurate linking play, wider channels and tactical kicking.
- Fitness and finishing: whether in-form scorers like Ubisi can convert pressure into points against a top defence.
Saturday’s match will be a useful barometer ahead of future internationals: a chance to taste the intensity of top-tier opposition at home and measure how lessons from Exeter have been turned into improvement on the park.
For a team that made South African history last year, the Black Ferns’ visit is both a threat and an opportunity. The Springbok Women will aim to show that they have not only learned from defeat, but have organised their game well enough to test — and perhaps trouble — one of the world’s best sides.
