Fitzpatrick tips Springboks as team to beat in Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry

The expanded tour features a packed schedule of men’s and women’s fixtures across South Africa, beginning on 7 August when the DHL Stormers face the All Blacks at DHL Stadium in Cape Town. 

The tourists will then take on the Hollywoodbets Sharks in Durban and the Vodacom Bulls in Pretoria, before the Test series between the Springboks and All Blacks opens in Johannesburg. 

The final match of the tour will be played at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore in the United States on 12 September, and Fitzpatrick says South Africa’s depth, back-to-back Rugby World Cup titles and their world number one ranking make them the team to beat.

"South Africa are quite clearly the best team in the world, not only in terms of the performances on the field, but also because of the depth that Rassie has created. Let's see how they handle being number one, for me as an All Black fan I'm really excited to see what's in store, we are not the finished product yet."

READ: Rassie explains decision to delay Kolisi and Etzebeth returns against Wales

Fitzpatrick captained New Zealand to their historic 1996 series victory in South Africa - the All Blacks’ first Test series win on South African soil. 

Reflecting on that era, he says the strongest All Blacks teams were built on fierce internal competition, where every player had to consistently earn their place.

Fitzpatrick was impressed by New Zealand’s 34-32 victory over France in the opening round of the Nations Championship in Christchurch. 

He adds that the Super Rugby competition has helped develop the next generation of international talent.

"Although it's not the most competitive competition in the world, I thought the Super Rugby season was outstanding. There is a number of players that have come through in the last 12 months that you and I haven't heard of before."