Ireland to show 'balls' against Boks

Robbie Henshaw has called on his teammates to “go for it” when Ireland clash with the Springboks in a decisive World Cup match in Paris on Saturday.

Going into the third round of the World Cup, Ireland are top of Pool B but are closely followed by South Africa, who trail by just one log point.

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The currently-ranked world number one will face the defending world champions at the Stade de France on Saturday night, in a game that will be decisive for both teams’ quarter-final ambitions.

Ireland claimed a narrow win when they last faced the Boks last November in Dublin and centre Henshaw knows what to expect from the South Africans.

“Their power game is massive up front, and then they have some exciting backs who are lighting it up on the edges,” Henshaw was quoted by the Irish Examiner.

“I suppose what we learned in November is to expect anything from their defence. They are going to come hard off the line and they’ll leave two or three players out on the edge, and close you off on the inside.

“I think, for us, we probably have to be accurate and then we will have to have balls to go for it as well.”

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South Africa’s regional franchises competing regularly against the Irish provinces in the United Rugby Championship has only built the rivalry between the two countries.

“We do come up against them a bit more since those teams were added to the URC. It makes it more competitive,” Henshaw said.

“We know what we are in for. The support that we’ve had over the last two weeks has been incredible. I can’t imagine what a packed-out Stade de France will be like. It’s really exciting.”

Photo: Paul Faith / AFP