Athlone gets one more Saturday with the Bok Women this year, and nobody in green wants it to feel like a farewell. Last week the crowd watched their team cross the Irish line five times and still walk off beaten. Tomorrow afternoon the same two sides meet on the same grass, and the home coaches have changed eight starting jerseys to write a different ending. This Springbok Women Ireland second Test preview has both teams in full, what the coaches are saying, where the first Test slipped away and why a shared series would still mean a great deal.
| Quick facts | |
|---|---|
| Match | Springbok Women v Ireland, WXV Global Series, second and final Test |
| When | Saturday 31 October 2026, 15:00 SAST (13:00 Irish time) |
| Where | Athlone Stadium, Cape Town |
| Series | Ireland lead 1-0 after winning the first Test 40-27 |
| Referee | Jess Ling (Rugby Australia) |
| Captains | Sizophila Solontsi (South Africa), Erin King (Ireland) |
| TV | TG4 Player and app in Ireland; SA Rugby has not named a South African broadcaster |
| Tickets | Ticketmaster |
Springbok Women Ireland second Test: what is at stake
The sums are simple and a little cruel. Ireland lead a two-Test series 1-0, so the most the Bok Women can take from this week is a share of it. That is still worth fighting for. This is their final Test of 2026, and they have never beaten Ireland. Before this month the two had met once, in Edmonton during the 2006 World Cup, and the Irish won that day 37-0.
A win would be a first, at the third attempt. Co-coach Laurian Johannes-Haupt put the occasion in her own terms. Facing one of the world’s top five sides, she said in SA Rugby’s team release, is the chance to sign off “with a performance that will do justice to our year and reward one of the most passionate crowds in the women’s game.”
Ireland know what is on the table for them too. Scott Bemand’s side have never won a series in South Africa, and they have one hand on it. “Completing a series win, a historic win in South Africa, that’ll be a first for Irish rugby,” the Ireland head coach said this week.
Johannes-Haupt’s own message was shorter. “We are not going to Athlone to lose on Saturday.”
Where the first Test got away
There are two honest ways to read last Saturday. The Bok Women crossed five times against a top-five side. They also handed Ireland far too much ball in dangerous places, and Ireland turned it into six.
SA Rugby did not dress it up in its own match report. It listed three things: errors nobody forced at the moments that mattered most, gaps in the defence and a pack that never got on top. It also had Ireland playing close to 60% of the game in the South African half. When the home side did get close, the finishing let them down: a crooked throw at a lineout on the Irish five-metre line, and two attacking mauls stopped about five metres out, according to SA Rugby’s post-match copy.
The Irish Examiner traced the opening try back to Erin King: she stole a lineout and won two breakdown penalties early on, and Aoife Dalton’s try came off the second. The same report noticed indiscipline creeping into the South African game, and Byrhandré Dolf coming up just short of a try of her own.
The coaches owned it afterwards. “Our defence was also not accurate enough at times,” Johannes-Haupt admitted. Her fellow co-coach Franzel September saw a way back: “We can fix that though, so that is why I believe we can turn this around next weekend.”
How the 40-27 unfolded, try by try, is in our first Test report.
Team news: eight jerseys change hands
This is no tinker. Eight of last week’s 15 starting jerseys have a new owner: four players come into the side and four more change position.
One change was not planned. SA Rugby says Sanelisiwe Charlie “sustained a serious knee injury at training in the week”, which rules the prop out of the match. Yonela Ngxingolo, who won her 50th Test cap off the bench last Saturday, starts at loosehead, and Anuschka Ekron comes onto the bench. Johannes-Haupt said nothing else was forced on them, which meant the coaches “could continue with our planned rotation for our final test of the year”.
That rotation runs right through the side. Lindelwa Gwala starts at hooker with Anushka Groenewald among the replacements. Danelle Lochner joins Vainah Ubisi in the second row, Catha Jacobs moves from lock to the flank, and Lerato Makua drops to the bench.
The backline is where it gets interesting. Mary Zulu starts at flyhalf, so Dolf moves from 10 to fullback. Jakkie Cilliers shifts from fullback to the right wing, Alichia Arries crosses to the left, and Maria Tshiremba, a try-scorer last week, is on the bench. Sizophila Solontsi keeps the captaincy and Unam Tose stays at scrumhalf.
“We believe the changes will provide a better outcome against Ireland,” Johannes-Haupt said. SA Rugby’s release adds that the changes do not mean a new style of play.
On the bench, Nomsa Mokwai replaces Logan Welman, and Insaaf Levy is the backup scrumhalf, with Anacadia Minnaar left out of the 23. Ekron and Levy are both local players who started their international season at the Rugby Africa Women’s Cup in Kenya. “I am happy that they finally get a chance to play and the fact that both are local players is an added bonus,” Johannes-Haupt said.
Springbok Women: 15 Byrhandré Dolf, 14 Jakkie Cilliers, 13 Maceala Samboya, 12 Shiniqwa Lamprecht, 11 Alichia Arries, 10 Mary Zulu, 9 Unam Tose, 8 Aseza Hele, 7 Catha Jacobs, 6 Sizophila Solontsi (captain), 5 Danelle Lochner, 4 Vainah Ubisi, 3 Xoliswa Khuzwayo, 2 Lindelwa Gwala, 1 Yonela Ngxingolo. Replacements: 16 Anushka Groenewald, 17 Anuschka Ekron, 18 Thandile Mazwi, 19 Nomsa Mokwai, 20 Aphiwe Ngwevu, 21 Lerato Makua, 22 Insaaf Levy, 23 Maria Tshiremba.
Ireland: two changes, and a series to close
Bemand has kept faith with most of the team that won last week. Aoibheann Reilly starts at scrumhalf in place of Emily Lane, and Niamh Gallagher starts at fullback, with Stacey Flood among the replacements. It is Gallagher’s second start in the 15 jersey. “She’s earned the right to come and have a crack at it,” Bemand said.
The bench has changed shape too. Ireland now carry five forwards and three backs, after six and two in the first Test, and Sophie Barrett is in line for her second cap. King captains again, and Djougang, who scored twice last week, starts at loosehead.
Bemand is not expecting a quieter afternoon. “We know we’re going to have to overcome that physicality again,” he said.
Ireland: 15 Niamh Gallagher, 14 Béibhinn Parsons, 13 Anna McGann, 12 Aoife Dalton, 11 Robyn O’Connor, 10 Dannah O’Brien, 9 Aoibheann Reilly, 8 Brittany Hogan, 7 Erin King (captain), 6 Fiona Tuite-O’Sullivan, 5 Dorothy Wall, 4 Jane Clohessy, 3 Eilís Cahill, 2 Neve Jones, 1 Linda Djougang. Replacements: 16 Beth Buttimer, 17 Niamh O’Dowd, 18 Sophie Barrett, 19 Grace Moore, 20 Jemima Adams Verling, 21 Emily Lane, 22 Eve Higgins, 23 Stacey Flood.
Where Saturday will be decided
Our reading, built on what both camps have said this week:
Territory first. Ireland lived in South African territory last week. Zulu’s main job at flyhalf is to play the game in the right half of the field, with Dolf, last week’s flyhalf, as a second pair of hands at the back.
The last five metres. The Bok Women got close often enough to win the match. A straight throw and a maul that keeps moving would have turned pressure into points.
The forward battle. SA Rugby’s own report pointed at the pack. Gwala brings 44 caps to the front row, and Lochner, a replacement last week, starts at lock against a pack that expects a fight.
Discipline. Ireland had two players sin-binned last week and still won. That kind of gift may not come twice.
The crowd. Athlone has carried this team before. Johannes-Haupt called it “the perfect venue and occasion to finish off a good season for our squad,” and she is right.
How to watch, and the rest of a big Saturday
The whistle goes at 15:00 SAST, or 13:00 on Irish clocks. The IRFU says Irish supporters can watch it on the TG4 Player and app. For viewers at home, SA Rugby’s team release and fixture page name no South African broadcaster, so keep an eye on SA Rugby’s own channels on Saturday morning. Tickets are on Ticketmaster.
Cape Town is busy on Saturday: the Stormers host Ulster earlier in the day, with the team news in our URC round five preview, and the weekend’s other kick-offs are listed in our weekend fixture guide. How this series was set up, captaincy change and all, is in our first Test preview, and this morning’s Fluit’s Five has Fluit’s verdict on the reshuffle.
Frequently asked questions
What time is the Springbok Women v Ireland second Test?
SA Rugby lists kick-off for 15:00 SAST on Saturday 31 October 2026, at Athlone in Cape Town. On Irish clocks that is 13:00.
Who won the first Test between the Springbok Women and Ireland?
Ireland won 40-27 at Athlone Stadium on Saturday 24 October, scoring six tries to five. That result gives Ireland a 1-0 lead in the two-Test series.
What changes have the Springbok Women made for Ireland?
Eight starting jerseys have changed. Ngxingolo, Gwala, Lochner and Zulu come into the front row, second row and flyhalf, while Jacobs (to flank), Dolf (to fullback), Cilliers and Arries (to the wings) change positions.
Can the Springbok Women still win the series against Ireland?
No. Ireland lead the two-Test series 1-0, so the best the Springbok Women can do is win on Saturday and draw the series 1-1. A win would also be their first ever against Ireland.
Where can I watch Springbok Women v Ireland?
The IRFU says the TG4 Player and app will show it in Ireland. When we looked on Friday morning, neither SA Rugby’s team release nor its fixture page named a South African broadcaster. Tickets are on Ticketmaster.