Two-time Rugby World Cup winner RG Snyman believes the Springboks could not have been “better prepared” for the Rugby Championship than their thrilling two-test win over Ireland last month.
That two-Test series will be talked about for years to come. The rugby rivalry between South Africa and Ireland was rekindled and strengthened through some unforgettable Tests at Loftus Versfeld and Kings Park.
South Africa, who won rugby’s top prize for a fourth time after losing pool play to Ireland at last year’s Rugby World Cup, opened the series with a 27-20 win in Pretoria.
A week later, the world champions were seconds away from victory before substitute Ciaran Frawley emerged as the hero Ireland needed, slotting home a clutch drop goal to give the visitors a 25-24 win in Durban.
It was only Ireland’s second win over the Springboks in South Africa. It was a historic result that gave Ireland a moral series win and something to brag about against the world’s No. 1 team, but the Springboks will be learning from it ahead of their next match against the Wallabies.
“I don’t think we could have prepared better for the Rugby Championship than we did against Ireland,” RG Snyman said. “We definitely learned a few things from that game and we want to take that into this competition.”
“Ireland prepared us really well for the game against Australia because (Australia coach) Joe Schmidt had a lot of systems in place while he was there.
“There will be some stylistically differences between the two teams, but in many ways there will be similarities when it comes to set-piece time. We are looking forward to the challenge.
He later added: “There will definitely be some differences depending on the style of play and players Australia bring.”
Head to head
Last 5 meetings
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“I think there are similarities in many ways.”
Australia will be riding a wave of confidence heading into the Rugby Championship after wins over Wales and Georgia to kick-start a new era under Joe Schmidt. Their four-game winning streak dating back to the World Cup is the longest actual winning run of any men’s top-flight team.
After a 40-29 win over Georgia at Allianz Stadium in Sydney (not to be confused with London’s Twickenham, which will soon share the same name), Schmidt insisted South Africa were on a “completely different level”.
The Wallabies have six players in their TRC squad, including Olympian Corey Toole and Western Force flanker Carlo Tizzano, who finished this year’s Super Rugby Pacific season with the most tackles of any player despite not playing in the final.
Test veteran Marika Koroibete is also back in the mix for the first time this year, while world-class prop Angus Bell is set to return after a lengthy spell on the sidelines due to injury. But it’s not all good news for Australia, with several players out injured.
But the Springboks are not taking the challenge lightly. They have been in Australia for a while to get used to the local climate and time zone before playing the Wallabies in Brisbane on August 10 and Perth on August 17.
“Arriving in Australia a week before the Test was beneficial as it gave me more time to overcome the time difference, especially outside of the Test week,” Snyman explained.
“The players have now adapted well to the time zone, we are training at full strength and feeling good, so we are looking forward to Saturday’s game.”
