With 2022 reaching its conclusion and 2023 right around the corner – a year that features the Rugby World Cup – We take a look back at how the Springboks did over the last 12 months, while also looking ahead at what the new year has in store.

The Springboks are reigning and defending Rugby World Cup Champions after winning the title in 2019 at the tournament in Japan three years ago. The team’s 32-12 victory over England in the final meant they were able to go level with New Zealand with the most titles ever in the competition’s history as they claimed their third.

As a result, there will be many that will be interested in the latest sports betting odds from Betway that are already being made available for the upcoming event in the new year when it takes place in France between September and October.

However, with a rather mixed bag of fortunes on the field throughout 2022, there may be some doubts as to whether the Springboks can retain their title and bring it back to South Africa in back-to-back editions of the sport’s biggest competition. Let’s take a look at how the year turned out…

8 wins in 13 games for Boks

While many would suggest that 2022 was a year that provided some rather mixed results, it is important not to forget that South Africa did manage to win more than half of the games that they played throughout the year.

Having played 13 tests, all of which would have had punters from around the world placing bets on sportsbooks including Betway, the Springboks did manage to win a total of eight of those. The other five results, though, ended in defeats, thus giving them an overall win percentage of 61.5%. These 13 matches were played against eight different teams.

How did The Springboks get on?

South Africa started the 2022 campaign with tests against Wales and New Zealand, with two wins from the three against the Welsh and one win from the two games held against the All Blacks having been obtained. Each of these matches were played at home, before a trip to Australia was taken in August as they started to tour the rest of the world.

The Springboks suffered defeat in the first game with the Wallabies in Adelaide, however, they were able to get the victory in Sydney before completing a clean sweep against Argentina in a two-game series. Many who would have been watching the team in action and placing sports wagers on Betway involving them would have felt that this would have been the perfect preparation for what was to come next, but things were not as expected.

South Africa would go on to lose against Ireland and France, however, they ended their 2022 season with victories over Italy and England.

 

Will 2023 be a better year?

With 2022 out of the way, there will be plenty of attention in 2023 for Jacques Nienaber and his squad of players, especially with the Rugby World Cup on the horizon. While it is impossible to know at this stage whether the year will end up being better for the team, there is no doubt that there will be plenty of expectations and many will want to see improvement if they are to keep their crown and essentially return to being the best national team in the whole of rugby.