South Africa v Ireland PREDICTION: Close, but …

It’s no time to sit on the fence, we’re firmly behind the Springboks in their Rugby World Cup Pool B match against Ireland on Saturday, 23 September.

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Kick-off is at 21:00 (SA time).

The winner of the match will in all likelihood go on to finish top of Pool B and face the runner-up in Pool A in the quarter-finals, while the loser is likely to face the winner of Pool A (France in all probability) in the Last 8.

So, who’s going to win?

As reported by The South African website, leading SA bookmakers Hollywoodbets have installed the Springboks as 7/10 favourites with Ireland on offer at 13/10.

The draw after 80 minutes is available at 22/1.

PREDICTION: South Africa 21-18 Ireland

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Meanwhile, such has been the hype and coverage of the Springboks v Ireland clash at the Stade de France, that many may not know that there are in fact TWO other fixtures scheduled on the day.

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Georgia will take on Portugal in Pool C in a match that both sides will have circled in their calendars as a potential victory.

That clash in Toulouse will kick off at 14:00 (SA time).

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Following that match, England will take on Chile in Pool D in Lille at 17:45 (SA time).

England will want to give their fans something to cheer about with a solid 80-minute performance against their South American opponents.

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But there’s no doubting that those two matches are merely curtain raisers to the blockbuster showdown between Ireland, the world’s No 1-ranked side, and the second-ranked defending champion Springboks in Paris.

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TEAMS

South Africa

15 Damian Willemse, 14 Kurt-Lee Arendse, 13 Jesse Kriel, 12 Damian de Allende, 11 Cheslin Kolbe, 10 Manie Libbok, 9 Faf de Klerk, 8 Jasper Wiese, 7 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 6 Siya Kolisi (captain), 5 Franco Mostert, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Bongi Mbonambi, 1 Steven Kitshoff

Substitutes: 16 Deon Fourie, 17 Ox Nche, 18 Trevor Nyakane, 19, Jean Kleyn, 20 RG Snyman, 21 Marco van Staden, 22 Kwagga Smith, 23 Cobus Reinach

Ireland

15 Hugo Keenan, 14 Mack Hansen, 13 Garry Ringrose, 12 Bundee Aki, 11 James Lowe, 10 Johnny Sexton (captain), 9 Jamison Gibson-Park, 8 Caelan Doris, 7 Josh van der Flier, 6 Peter O’Mahony, 5 James Ryan, 4 Tadhg Beirne, 3 Tadhg Furlong, 2 Ronan Kelleher, 1 Andrew Porter

Replacements: 16 Dan Sheehan, 17 Dave Kilcoyne, 18 Finlay Bealham, 19 Iain Henderson, 20 Ryan Baird, 21 Conor Murray, 22 Jack Crowley, 23 Robbie Henshaw

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