The Springboks will head to Bloemfontein for the first time since 2010 and New Zealand will be in action at Newlands in Cape Town as SA Rugby confirmed the home venues for the 2017 Rugby Championships on Friday.
The Springboks will play the Pumas in Port Elizabeth, the Wallabies in Bloemfontein and the All Blacks in Cape Town.
The first match of the Rugby Championship will take place on Saturday 19 August at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth, when Argentina clash with the Boks.
The following week, the Springboks will be in action in Argentina against Los Pumas (Saturday 26 August, in Salta), whereafter it’s the first bye weekend.
The Boks’ traditional tour to Australasia is in early September for matches against the Wallabies (Saturday, 9 September, NIB Stadium in Perth) and All Blacks (Saturday 16 September, QBE Stadium in Albany).
Although the Springboks have played in Perth before, they have never been in action at NIB Stadium, home ground of the Western Force.
The match in Albany will be the South Africans’ third visit to QBE Stadium after they played two matches in the 2011 Rugby World Cup – against Samoa and Namibia – at this stadium, which is used as secondary home base by the Blues.
Photo: BackpagePix
A second bye weekend follows the tour before the Springboks head home for their last two encounters, on Saturday 30 September against Australia at the Free State Stadium in Bloemfontein, and Saturday 7 October against New Zealand at Newlands in Cape Town.
This will be the All Blacks’ first visit to the Mother City since 2008 and the 10th time these two teams will clash in a Test in the Western Cape in 89 years, when New Zealand first played in Cape Town.
Springbok Rugby Championship Fixtures
19 August – Springboks v Argentina, Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth
26 August – Argentina v Springboks, Salta
9 September – Australia v Springboks, NIB Stadium, Perth
16 September – New Zealand v Springboks, QBE Stadium, Albany
30 September – Springboks v Australia, Free State Stadium, Bloemfontein
7 October – Springboks v New Zealand, Newlands, Cape Town