The Southern Hemisphere's heavy-hitters have reached the half-way mark of the Rugby Championship, with New Zealand sitting top of the rankings after three games.

Despite opening with a defeat to Argentina, back-to-back wins mean the All Blacks are currently on course to collect another Rugby Championship, their 10th crown and fourth in five years.

Following last year's wooden spoon finish and this summer's disappointing British and Irish Lions Test series defeat, Australia have made early inroads of their own, and remain just a point off the Kiwis in second.

The Wallabies claimed their first victory in Johannesburg since 1963, in a 38-22 win over the Springboks in their opener, and also beat Argentina last time out.

Meanwhile, reigning World champions South Africa have endured an underwhelming first half, having lost two of their first three games, including a 24-17 defeat to New Zealand, as well as their first loss to the Wallabies on home soil since 2011. 

Elsewhere, Argentina chalked up an historic first home win against the All Blacks, with Los Pumas triumphing 29-23 in Buenos Aires to get their Rugby Championship campaign off to a flying start. Argentina have now won their second consecutive opening game of the tournament, having lost the previous 11. 

While Felipe Contepomi's side have gone on to lose their subsequent matches against the All Blacks and Australia, they will be hoping to avoid finishing bottom of the pile for the 10th time.

Here, we take a look at the best Opta stats ahead of this weekend's action, picking out the players to watch in each contest.

Round 4 is upon us

Can you believe we are already passed the halfway mark? #TheRugbyChampionship pic.twitter.com/zvrI6gQyG8

— TheRugbyChampionship (@SanzarTRC) September 9, 2025

AUSTRALIA V ARGENTINA

If Australia are to have a hope of winning their first Rugby Championship crown in 10 years, they must first overcome Los Pumas again, a side they have failed to beat twice in the same calendar year since 2021.

The Wallabies have won two of their last three Tests against Argentina, including a 28-24 comeback victory in the third round last Saturday.

Argentina, meanwhile, have not trailed at half-time in any of their last six Tests against Australia but still lost three of those matches. Los Pumas have also not overturned a half-time deficit against the Wallabies since October 2014, neither of which are good omens.

As for recent form, Australia have taken three wins from their last four Tests after managing just one victory in their previous five. Notably, they have scored 30 points or more only once across those nine games.

Argentina have been beaten in five of their last six away Tests, including each of their last three. The last time they endured a longer losing run on the road was a seven-match skid between August and November 2021.

In the 2025 Rugby Championship, Argentina have recorded the fastest attacking ruck speed of any side at 3.2 seconds, while Australia lead defensively, averaging 3.3 seconds at the ruck.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Australia – James O'Connor

James O'Connor, who received a late call-up to the Australia squad after missing the Lions series, has registered 298 points and needs just two more points to reach 300 in Test rugby.

Against Argentina, he has scored 16 points in his last 148 minutes on the field, successfully converting all seven of his goal-kicking attempts during that span.

Argentina – Juan Martin Gonzalez

Juan Martin Gonzalez has crossed the gainline on 93% of his 14 carries in the 2025 Rugby Championship, the best rate of any player with at least seven carries.

Australia's Tom Wright, meanwhile, leads all players for most carries (six) with a perfect record of crossing the gainline every time.

NEW ZEALAND V SOUTH AFRICA

The Springboks head into their second game with New Zealand knowing their hopes of retaining their status as Rugby Championship champions hang in the balance, with a loss almost certainly meaning it will become a straight shootout between the Kiwis and Australia. 

Rassie Erasmus' side have lost two of their last three men's Tests and will be out to avoid back-to-back losses for the first time since a pair of defeats to Ireland and France in November 2022.

South Africa's recent away record against the All Blacks does not make for pretty reading, having managed just one win from their last 12 Tests in New Zealand – a narrow 36-34 result in September 2018 – although they remain unbeaten in their two most recent encounters with the All Blacks in Wellington (W1 D1).

Having made 10.7 entries into the opposition 22m area per game in 2025's edition of the Rugby Championship, the most of any team in the competition, South Africa have scored just 1.8 points per entry, which is the fewest of any team.

Conversely, New Zealand have made the fewest entries per game (six) and scored the most points per entry (4.2).

New Zealand ended a four-match losing run against South Africa last weekend. They are now aiming to beat the Springboks twice in the same edition of the tournament for the first time since 2017.

The All Blacks have won six of their last seven home Tests in The Rugby Championship, including their last three in a row. The last time they managed a longer such winning streak was a remarkable 24-match run, spanning from the 2009 Tri-Nations through to the 2018 Rugby Championship.

In Wellington, the All Blacks have put together back-to-back victories after failing to win any of their previous five Tests in the city (D2 L3). However, they have lost each of their last four matches there when conceding 20 points or more.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

New Zealand – Will Jordan

Will Jordan has had a hand in 27 tries over his last 21 Tests, scoring 20 himself and setting up seven.

He crossed the line once against South Africa in the third round of this year's Rugby Championship and has impressively scored a try in all three of his home matches against the Springboks in the competition.

South Africa – Ox Nche

Ox Nche has drawn in two or more defenders on 93% of his 15 carries in the 2025 Rugby Championship, the joint-highest rate in the competition.

The only other player matching that efficiency is his team-mate Kwagga Smith, who has done the same on 93% of his 14 carries.