Ireland coach Andy Farrell says that it is a privilege for them to be able to tour South Africa and play against the Springboks on their home turf , ahead of the opening game of the two-Test series kicking off at Loftus on Saturday (5pm).
It is the first time since 2016 that the Irish have toured the country, while the two sides have only played against each other twice in the past six years.
After Irelands 2016 tour and the clash between the two sides in Dublin in 2017, there was a four-year period where they didnt face each other, until they met again in Dublin in 2022 and then in the World Cup pool stage in France in 2023.
Privilege to feel the Bok passionIts funny because when the games come around everyone talks about the rivalry. But we havent played (each other) much at all, said Farrell.
We have always said that the more that we play the top teams the better it is for us, win or lose, and we tend to only get the consistency of that through the Autumn (end-of-year) series which is normally a one game wonder.
