The Springboks remain fifth in the World Rugby rankings despite slumping to a record 38-3 defeat against Ireland on Saturday.

South Africa suffered their heaviest-ever defeat against the Irish in Dublin, and although that sees the Boks docked a full rating point from 85.04 to 84.04, they remain in fifth position.

Ireland gained a full point, but it wasn’t enough to leapfrog the third-ranked Wallabies, who also improved their rating following a 13th successive win over Wales in Cardiff.

Lower down on the list, Italy have surpassed Tonga in the No 13 spot after their nine-point win over Fiji.

World Rugby rankings (Top 20)

1. New Zealand 93.83
2. England 90.14
3. Australia 88.02
4. Ireland 86.39
5. South Africa 84.04
6. Scotland 82.47
7. Wales 80.98
8. France 79.63
9. Fiji 77.93
10. Argentina 76.93
11. Japan 73.79
12. Georgia 73.41
13. Italy 72.55
14. Tonga 71.72
15. Romania 70.27
16. Samoa 69.67
17. USA 65.84
18. Russia 64.12
19. Uruguay 63.15
20. Spain 63.15
Full rankings
How the rankings work

Photo: @Springboks/Twitter