History of rugby union matches between Scotland and South Africa

Cartoon after the SA-Scotland match in 1906

The national rugby union teams of Scotland and South Africa (the Springboks) have been playing each other in Test rugby since 1906, and as of November 2021, they have met in 28 Test matches. Their first meeting was on 17 November 1906, and was won 6-0 by Scotland and their most recent match was on 10 September 2023 at the 2023 Rugby World Cup, and was won 18-3 by South Africa.

South Africa have won the majority of games played between the two sides, with 23 victories in the 28 matches. They are also the only team to win an away match between the sides, having won 15 times in Scotland. South Africa have won all seven of their home games. Since South Africa's rugby re-admission in 1992, South Africa has dominated once again, winning 18 of the 20 encounters between the two.

The 1906 match between Scotland and South Africa was South Africa's first official international rugby tour. It was also the tour in which the Springbok nickname was coined. South Africa lost to Scotland, defeated Ireland and Wales and drew with England. They also played a game against a representative French side drawn from two Parisian clubs and won.

Summary

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Overall

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Details Played Won by
Scotland
Won by
South Africa
Drawn Scotland points South Africa points
In Scotland 20 5 15 0 197 483
In South Africa 7 0 7 0 108 225
Neutral venue 2 0 2 0 19 52
Overall 29 5 24 0 324 760

Records

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Note: Date shown in brackets indicates when the record was or last set.

Record Scotland South Africa
Longest winning streak 2 (17 Apr 1965 – 19 Nov 1994) 8 (17 Nov 2012–present)
Largest points for
Home 29 (3 October 1999) 55 (28 June 2014)
Away 25 (7 June 2003) 68 (6 December 1997)
Largest winning margin
Home 15 (16 November 2002) 49 (28 June 2014)
Away NA 58 (6 December 1997)
Largest aggregate score
78 (South Africa 68 - 10 Scotland) (6 December 1997)

Results

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No. Date Venue Score Winner Competition
1 17 November 1906 Hampden Park, Glasgow 6–0  Scotland 1906–07 South Africa rugby union tour of Europe
2 23 November 1912 Inverleith, Edinburgh 0–16  South Africa 1912-13 South Africa rugby union tour of Europe
3 16 January 1932 Murrayfield, Edinburgh 3–6  South Africa 1931–32 South Africa rugby union tour of Britain and Ireland
4 24 November 1951 Murrayfield, Edinburgh 0–44  South Africa 1951–52 South Africa rugby union tour of Europe
5 30 April 1960 EPRU Stadium, Port Elizabeth 18–10  South Africa
6 21 January 1961 Murrayfield, Edinburgh 5–12  South Africa 1960–61 South Africa rugby union tour of Europe
7 17 April 1965 Murrayfield, Edinburgh 8–5  Scotland 1965 South Africa rugby union tour of Scotland and Ireland
8 6 December 1969 Murrayfield, Edinburgh 6–3  Scotland 1969–70 South Africa rugby union tour of Britain and Ireland
9 19 November 1994 Murrayfield, Edinburgh 10–34  South Africa 1994 South Africa rugby union tour of Britain and Ireland
10 6 December 1997 Murrayfield, Edinburgh 10–68  South Africa 1997 South Africa rugby union tour of Europe
11 21 November 1998 Murrayfield, Edinburgh 10–35  South Africa 1998 South Africa rugby union tour of Britain and Ireland
12 3 October 1999 Murrayfield, Edinburgh 29–46  South Africa 1999 Rugby World Cup
13 16 November 2002 Murrayfield, Edinburgh 21–6  Scotland 2002 South Africa rugby union tour of Europe
14 7 June 2003 Kings Park Stadium, Durban 29–25  South Africa 2003 Scotland rugby union tour of South Africa
15 14 June 2003 Ellis Park, Johannesburg 28–19  South Africa
16 27 November 2004 Murrayfield, Edinburgh 10–45  South Africa 2004 Autumn Internationals
17 10 June 2006 Kings Park Stadium, Durban 36–16  South Africa 2006 mid-year rugby test series
18 17 June 2006 EPRU Stadium, Port Elizabeth 29–15  South Africa
19 25 August 2007 Murrayfield, Edinburgh 3–27  South Africa 2007 Rugby World Cup warm-up test
20 15 November 2008 Murrayfield, Edinburgh 10–14  South Africa 2008 Autumn International
21 20 November 2010 Murrayfield, Edinburgh 21–17  Scotland 2010 Autumn International
22 17 November 2012 Murrayfield, Edinburgh 10–21  South Africa 2012 Autumn International
23 15 June 2013 Mbombela Stadium, Nelspruit 30–17  South Africa South African Quadrangular tournament
24 17 November 2013 Murrayfield, Edinburgh 0–28  South Africa 2013 Autumn International
25 28 June 2014 Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth 55–6  South Africa 2014 Mid-year Test
26 3 October 2015 St James' Park, Newcastle, England 34–16  South Africa 2015 Rugby World Cup
27 17 November 2018 Murrayfield, Edinburgh 20–26  South Africa 2018 Autumn International
28 13 November 2021 Murrayfield, Edinburgh 15–30  South Africa 2021 Autumn International
29 10 September 2023 Stade Vélodrome, Marseille 18–3  South Africa 2023 Rugby World Cup

List of series

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Played Won by
Scotland
Won by
South Africa
Drawn
2 0 2 0
Year Scotland South Africa Series winner
South Africa 2003 0 2  South Africa
South Africa 2006 0 2  South Africa
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