The Springboks achieved a thrilling victory over the All Blacks in the 2023 World Cup final, with Eben Ezebeth playing a leading role for South Africa throughout the tournament.
Ireland and France both entered the World Cup as strong contenders, but were eliminated at the quarter-final stage.
World rankings: Ireland move into first place over Springboks
The Six Nations opened last weekend with a close battle between France and Ireland, with South African-born Irish-Ulster hooker Rob Herring predicting it would be “the World Cup final that everyone wanted but never got.'' '.
But in classic fashion, Etzebeth cut into the comments and simply dropped a laughing face at the allegations. His response is sure to resonate with many South Africans and other rugby enthusiasts who cannot believe that the Springboks-All Blacks final was anything but a classic match between age-old rivals.
Also read | 7 Springboks who will miss the next World Cup
Six Nations 2024 fixtures
round 1
Friday, February 2nd France 17 Ireland 38
Saturday 3rd February Italy 24 England 27
Saturday 3rd February Wales 26 Scotland 27
round 2
Saturday, February 10th, Scotland vs. France (15:15)
Saturday, February 10th, England vs. Wales (17:45)
Sunday, February 11th Ireland vs. Italy (16:00)
round 3
Saturday 24th February Ireland vs Wales (15:15)
Saturday, February 24th, Scotland vs. England (17:45)
Sunday, February 25th, France vs. Italy (16:00)
round 4
Saturday, March 9 Italy vs. Scotland (15:15)
Saturday, March 11th England vs. Ireland (17:45)
Sunday, March 12th, Wales vs. France (16:00)
round 5
Saturday, March 16th, Wales vs. Italy (15:15)
Saturday 16th March Ireland vs Scotland (17:45)
March 16th (Saturday) France vs England (21:00)
Also read | Springbok Awards: There can only be one winner of Player of the Year!
Also read | Rassie Erasmus speaks frankly about health concerns and tells his players:
Also read: Rassie Erasmus' three big decisions as the new Springbok manager
