Ireland veteran Robbie Henshaw says he’s relishing what he calls a “real test” as Ireland prepare to host the Springboks in Dublin on Saturday.
That description was in terms of assessing Ireland’s development after they made a poor start to their Nations Series, which saw them suffering a 26-13 defeat to the All Blacks in Chicago in their campaign opener.
The men from the Emerald Isle followed that up with an underwhelming performance against Japan at the Aviva Stadium before a strong finish secured them a 41-10 triumph.
In their next match, Andy Farrell’s charges hit their straps as they delivered a superb all-round display en route to a deserved 46-19 triumph over the Wallabies in Dublin.
And now Ireland face their toughest assignment yet against World Rugby’s number one-ranked team, the Springboks, who will be in a confident mood as they have shown good form to register superb victories over Japan (61-7), France (32-17) and Italy (32-14) during their Nations Series campaign so far.
Despite that impressive record, Ireland will fancy their chances of beating the world champions as they have held the upper hand in this fixture in recent years, winning six of the last 10 matches.
Farrell’s side won the last match between these nations, in Durban in 2024, which secured them a famous 1-1 series draw in South Africa and the Boks last beat them in Dublin in 2012.
And Henshaw hopes his side can continue where they left off in last weekend’s victory over the Wallabies.
“I think they’re the talk of world rugby at the moment in terms of the strength in depth they have, the individual talent,” said the 32-year-old.
“They’re grinding out results – teams looks like they have them and then they find a way to get back.
“It’s a proper test for us to see where we’re at. We have gone toe-to-toe with them, from summer last year it was one win each in that series, so I suppose they’ll be looking at that as well.
“It’s massively exciting because they’re such a proud nation as well and, you know, when we play against them here in Dublin, it’s always a thriller.”
