Cape Town – As the Rugby World Cup looms, the Springboks this week remain fourth on World Rugby’s official rankings.
Heyneke Meyer’s charges currently boast 85.15 ratings points, trailing Ireland Australia and New Zealand.
Ireland’s 16-10 home loss to Wales at the weekend saw them slip to third, with Australia moving into second spot.
Ireland’s defeat cost them 1.7 ratings points, leaving them on 85.19 points, 1.48 adrift of the Wallabies.
The All Blacks (92.89) remain comfortably atop the rankings – a position they have occupied since November 2009.
Wales, meanwhile, moved above their RWC 2015 Pool A opponents England and into fifth place in the rankings following a performance that was several notches higher than the one they’d produced when losing 35-21 to Ireland in Cardiff three weeks previously.
Wales’ first victory in Dublin for three years saw their rating total improve by 1.69 points to 84.63 – less than four tenths more than England.
World Rugby rankings (Top 15):
1. New Zealand 92.89
2. Australia 86.67
3. Ireland 85.19
4. South Africa 85.15
5. Wales 84.63
6. England 84.24
7. France 80.90
8. Argentina 78.39
9. Fiji 77.04
10. Scotland 76.10
11. Tonga 75.25
12. Samoa 75.14
13. Georgia 72.16
14. Japan 71.15
15. Italy 70.53
Source: Sport24
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