There was a degree of consternation from those in Australia for the British and Irish Lions series when Wallabies boss Joe Schmidt made mention of the upcoming challenges that the Rugby Championship would pose. Schmidt, it seemed, was suggesting that part of the reason that Will Skelton and Rob Valetini were absent from his squad for the first Test was partly to do with the need to hold something back for the encounters to come against South Africa – which rather jarred in the days before a once-in-a-generation rugby moment.
Yet Schmidt’s comments reflected both the fast-moving world of modern international rugby union, with this tournament beginning two weeks after the Lions series came to an end, and the importance placed on the southern hemisphere’s marquee event. Its popularity and global recognition as the best meeting the best may have dipped slightly since the heady days of the Tri Nations era but the Rugby Championship still has a real capacity to captivate, with the distinct identities of the four competing sides and the evolution of Argentina into a genuine threat layering extra annual intrigue.
