Australia vs South Africa predictions and Rugby Championship tips: Boks on top but points could be scarce

Where to watch Australia vs South Africa

Live on Sky Sports Action, 10.45am Saturday

Best bet

Under 45 points
2pts 11-10 bet365

Australia vs South Africa predictions

These are tough times for Australian rugby union, so much so that a South Africa team who have made ten changes to their line-up from last week's 33-7 victory over the Wallabies in Brisbane are still 12-point favourites to follow up in Perth.

Australia coach Joe Schmidt has looked to bolster the team, recalling experienced scrum-half Nic White and winger Marika Koroibete but it may not be enough to overcome the gulf we saw in last weekend's Rugby Championship opener.

The Springboks were their usual dominant force up front but were also able to find plenty of gaps in a chaotic defence, and the return of Makazole Mapimpi and Lukhanyo Am to the Bok backline should set alarm bells ringing.

That said, both sides may struggle for fluency at the outset, especially given the many changes the away side have made. Australia showed little in attack last week – their only try came with minutes to go against 13 men – and a rainy forecast just adds to the case for betting on a low-scoring game.

The Wallabies have lost their last three meetings with world champions South Africa, posting tallies of eight, 12 and seven points in those games, so most of the scoring will be expected to come from the Boks.

Mapimpi is always a danger – he bagged a hat-trick of tries in his last outing against Portugal last month – but Am lines up in the unfamiliar number 12 shirt while the half-back pairing of Morne van den Berg, who makes his first start, and Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, who earned his first start last week, is sure to take time to gel.

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