Subtle changes in the air for Boks and Ireland

Given the playing personnel they've assembled for Saturday's Test against Ireland, you'd be forgiven for thinking the Springboks have broadened their playbook.

With Damian Willemse at flyhalf, Cheslin Kolbe at fullback and with an accent on athleticism among their forwards on the bench, the Springboks appear to be spreading their wings tactically, but perhaps the same can be said of Ireland who have long been in full embrace of their script.

Their captain Johnny Sexton insists his team will have to master different playing styles if they are going to remain the top ranked team in the world.

“If we want to do special things over the next 12 months we have got to be able to beat different teams playing different games and they are very different to New Zealand,” he said of the Springboks.

“They are almost unique. They are the nearest team to England maybe in terms of how they play. It will be tough,” said Sexton about Saturday's clash at the Aviva Stadium.

He argued that there is a need to remain tight against big, confrontational teams like the Springboks. “You look at SA and they’re flying off the line, putting you under pressure. You’ve got to try to stick to your system, get into those holes.

“You’ve got to do it better, because they don’t allow you a second.

“That was what I learnt in France, and we’re going to have to be right on top of that this week,” said Sexton in reference to his time in Paris with Racing 92.

Though some historical precedence is well established, Ireland's opinion of the Springboks under Rassie Erasmus/Jacques Nienaber, has been largely formed from afar.

The Springboks have not played Ireland since the visitors were thumped 38-3 in Dublin in 2017. Though the bulk of the pack who played in that clash are back this weekend, this Springbok team is of a different vintage.

“It was a tough day, a low point for us as a team,” recalled Lood de Jager. The lock was quick to remind that the sands of time have helped smooth over the team's rough edges. “That was five years ago. I think experience now helps. I think it is still going to be a really tough challenge. Hopefully it will be a better day at the office for us.”

Under Erasmus and Nienaber the team has undergone a transformation. Sure, they stick to their guns in the abrasive, no-nonsense way they go about their business, but the Boks have tweaked where they've needed to over the last four years.

“There will always be changes, even subtle changes,” confirmed Nienaber. “Even between the World Cup semifinal and the final. I think most teams have the ability to change and I think they will. Obviously you have an athletic profile and a skills profile that sits within your team which determines the way you do things.

“It is tough to move away from the things you've been the best in the world at doing.

“But they are a clever side and they will make special plans for us. They know what they want to do and what they are good at.

“And then they bring at little element of surprise in their game.”

Indeed, whoever blinks first and deviates furthest from their script may help decide the outcome of Saturday's crunch clash.