It was the final big weekend of international rugby of the year. There was plenty to learn: England made it 11 wins on the bounce against Argentina; South Africa throttled Ireland, passing a familar hurdle in Dublin; Wales fought valliantly against New Zealand.
It leaves plenty of food for thought, but are those reactions irrational or legitimate? It's time to judge.
ESPN's Tom Hamilton and James Regan weigh in on the weekend's talking points.
- Hamilton from Twickenham: Have England forgotten how to lose?
- Tom Curry called 'a bully' by Argentina coach
- Ireland defeat to South Africa 'chaotic' but Farrell 'proud'
- South Africa remind Ireland of gap in bruising win
England are Six Nations favourites
England went four from four this autumn and will be fancying their chances of lifting the title. But will they enter the championship as favourites?
Verdict: OVERREACTION
England's autumn was fantastic. Before their batch of matches started, I wrote they need to be targeting a clean sweep. That's what they achieved. Job done. On to the Six Nations. Over the past four weekends, they've moulded further depth in the squad, and given Steve Borthwick a bunch of lovely selection headaches.
Take the centres -- he has to pick two of: Max Ojomoh, Henry Slade, Fraser Dingwall, Ollie Lawrence, Seb Atkinson and Tommy Freeman (though he may end up back on the wing). Best of luck, Steve.
They've also established a bench that can make an impact, the 50-minute injection of fresh legs, tempo and vim.
But Six Nations favourites? Let's not get too carried away.
For me, that's still France. They dismantled Australia, have the best winger in world rugby in Louis Bielle-Biarrey, and for good measure, unleashed debutant Kalvin Gourgues who is just another outstanding talent to add to their ranks. They have Antoine Dupont to come back and bar their defeat against the Boks (more on them later), they had a solid autumn. I expect them to improve again heading into the Six Nations and should be labelled favourites for the whole thing -- Hamilton
Tom Curry is a 'bully'
Felipe Contepomi was left incensed by Curry's late tackle on Juan Cruz Mallia, one which left the fullback with a knee injury. In his post-match press conference, he labelled Curry a "bully" after an altercation in the tunnel.
Verdict: OVERREACTION
Curry's tackle on Mallia was late. It was in the grey area between penalty and yellow card. Contepomi was clearly furious. He was remonstrating with the officials soon after Mallia limped off, and the tempers overflowed at full-time, with Argentina's players surrounding Curry and letting him know exactly what they thought of him.
In the tunnel afterwards, the version of events go that Curry saw ex-Sale flanker and Pumas assistant coach Juan Martin Fernandez Lobbe, went over to shake his hand, was told the coaches were too upset to talk to him. Curry shoved Contepomi in the chest and told him to "f--- off" and that was that. Contepomi said it was the behaviour of a "bully."
I can understand why Contepomi was so upset, and emotional. His team had come close to the great escape for the second weekend running, and his star fullback had suffered what looked to be a serious injury. But Curry is no bully. He plays rugby on the edge, frequently putting his body second, and is someone who wears his heart on his sleeve. He can be spikey, he takes things to heart, but he is not a malicious player, nor is he a bully.
"He is the furthest thing from a bully I have ever seen," Henry Slade said afterwards. "He's such a genuine, genuine guy who cares a lot about everyone. Wears his heart on his sleeve. A very tough guy but I wouldn't say he's anywhere near being a bully at all. I'm sure there is no malice in it" -- Hamilton
Wales are finally off rock bottom
In the end, Wales were well-beaten by New Zealand, going down 52-26 in Cardiff, but there were signs if life for Steve Tandy's side.
Verdict: NOT AN OVERREACTION
For 45 minutes, Wales went toe-to-toe with New Zealand, which considering where they've been and where they are, should be viewed as a positive. Let's not forget this Wales outfit went 18 games without a win. They never stopped fighting against the All Blacks and even when the game was gone they were determined to throw the ball around and attack.
New Zealand's superior bench allowed them to run in four second half tries which blew the score out, but there was some positivity around the Principality even after full time. The arrival of South Africa next week will be a brutal one, but going into the Six Nations there are signs of life in Wales -- Regan
Ireland are in a rut
After suffering a 24-13 defeat to the Boks on Saturday, in a fairly farcical match which saw Ireland receive four yellow cards and a 20-minute red, their return of two wins from four this autumn is reason for concern.
Verdict: OVERREACTION
Andy Farrell's overwhelming emotion post-match on Saturday in Dublin was pride. He took immense heart by how his team rallied amid the flurry of yellow cards, and sin-bins. Ireland are not a bad side overnight, or over the spell of four autumn matches. But there are things to work on.
They've been unfortunate with injuries and their bench lacked punch on Saturday. Their set piece has been shaky -- with their lineout all over the place at the start of the autumn, and their scrum was dismantled by the Boks on Saturday. But let's face it, no team in the world could've lived with the Boks at the weekend. There's no doubt that the Lions were disruptive for Ireland, but with Farrell back in the hotseat, the Six Nations will look an altogether rosier picture -- Hamilton
Nobody is even close to South Africa
The Springboks will likely finish the year with a pair of defeats to their name, but sitting pretty at the top of the rankings and with the Rugby Championship safely stowed away for another year. They are setting the standard to the rest of world rugby.
Verdict: NOT AN OVERREACTION
Erasmus said this year was all about securing a top four ranking. Next year is when he'll innovate and shift things around. In other words, the Boks are looking to get even better. Gulp.
This has been a year where we've seen the breakthrough talent of Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu. We've seen the Boks take hybrid players to the next level with Andre Esterhuizen. We saw in Australia's win in Johannesburg, and the All Blacks' triumph in Auckland the Boks are fallible. But it's such a rare occurrence.
Right now, the Boks are by far the best team in world rugby. Their physicality is on another level, their controlled emotional aggression is also a benchmark for others to follow, and their strength in depth must surely be the envy of everyone else.
They finished the year without Ox Nche, Handre Pollard, Kurt-Lee Arandse, Frans Malherbe, Aphelele Fassi, Lood de Jager, Jean-Luc du Preez and Franco Mostert. Against Wales they'll also be without Pieter-Steph du Toit, Kwagga Smith, Jasper Wiese, Malcolm Marx, Damian de Allende, Jesse Kriel, Cheslin Kolbe, Thomas du Toit and Manie Libbok. So expect to see a few new faces, but likely the same outcome: a Boks win, and a northern hemisphere clean sweep. -- Hamilton
Jury is still out on Scott Robertson
The All Blacks have suffered three defeats this year, but there's a bit more to it as well. They suffered a record defeat to South Africa, lost in Argentina for the first time and almost blew a 17-0 lead against Scotland. It's by no means time for panic stations, but 2026 is shaping as a crucial year for Robertson.
Verdict: NOT AN OVERREACTION
It's not very scientific, but it just doesn't seem like New Zealand found their groove this year. First, the positives. A win over Ireland, their Eden Park winning record is in tact (with a win over South Africa) and a 3-0 sweep over France (albeit a depleted French outfit). But expectations in New Zealand run high. They were outplayed by England and were lucky they had the heroics of Damian McKenzie in Edinburgh.
There's a strong argument Robertson is blooding players and handing them valuable experience having lost some veterans in the last couple of years. The likes of Peter Lakai, Simon Parker, Fabian Holland and Leroy Carter and others would have benefited hugely from what this year has thrown at them.
The Test now will be to see if they can push on ahead of the 2027 World Cup. -- Regan