It's easy to isolate the results of the Rugby Championship as form finder, or worse, portent for the Rugby World Cup.
Last Saturday the All Blacks surged to the title in emphatic fashion against the Wallabies, while the Springboks limped home to secure second against an ever-improving Argentina whose bite now almost matches their growl.
There is no doubt the momentum that comes with developing a winning habit can only help lengthen stride further down the line. The Rugby Championship in a World Cup year, however, is perhaps the least reliable indicator of form, with coaches routinely testing different combinations.
Compared to four years ago, the All Blacks ticked every box imaginable in this campaign. They have shown vast improvement from their third place four years ago.
Results-wise the only difference for the Springboks this time round was defeat in New Zealand compared to a draw that helped set up their Rugby Championship triumph four years ago.
If they momentarily forget about the All Blacks and gaze inward, the Boks may come to the conclusion they are in better shape now than they were four years ago.
Experience is a commodity international coaches arguably value most. It is of course a currency that has stood the test of time in a World Cup context. Just about every team that has lifted the Webb Ellis Cup has done so with grizzled men well endowed with grit and grind in their DNA.
It is in that department where the Boks perhaps show the biggest difference compared to the squad they sent to Japan.
The starting team against the All Blacks in Auckland last month averaged 53 caps per player, which places eighth on their all-time list.
It is worth remembering that team did not feature captain Siya Kolisi (75 caps), and one can argue the way Duane Vermeulen (68) is playing, he may well return to starting team reckoning.
The starting team that drew against the All Blacks and helped set up their Rugby Championship triumph four years ago, averaged 30 caps in the starting team.
An abundance of caps of course provides institutional knowledge, it sharpens wherewithal and brings clarity of thought when there is the need to troubleshoot. Teams, however, cannot solely count on greying sideburns.
Detractors might argue the second most experienced Bok starting team ever lost to Japan in the pool stages of the 2015 World Cup and that the third most experienced team lost to Australia in the quarterfinals in 2011.
Coaches ignore the delicate balance between experience and athletic ability at their peril.
Whether head coach Jacques Nienaber's “best” Bok XV meets that criteria remains to be seen. The only position in which the starting team from the last World Cup final is guaranteed change, is at loose head prop, where Ox Nche and Steven Kitshoff are hoping they're next.
At No 8 Jasper Wiese had established himself as the go-to guy, but the events of recent weeks have invited further interrogation of the matter with Vermeulen rolling back opponents, and the years.
Elsewhere though, the Boks seem settled, but the injuries to Kolisi and flyhalf Handré Pollard are question marks they would want to remove before they leave London for Corsica later this month.
To be fair, the Kolisi poser has drawn them into territory they occupied four years ago. Kolisi did, however, return in time to play the last two warm-up matches against Argentina and Japan on the eve of the tournament.
Pollard's continued absence might prove a greater concern as it thrusts Manie Libbok very much into the spotlight that comes with playing No 10. He has done everything required of him thus far, and in Damian Willemse the Boks have a player who can slot into that position when the occasion demands it.
The Boks have more options than they did four years ago, they just need to choose the right ones.
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.