Damian de Allende says Saturday’s Test against Japan will be “fast, physical and exciting”.
The 33-year-old centre, who’s about to go into his fourth consecutive season in Japan Rugby League One, will square off against several of his Panasonic Wild Knights club teammates when the Springboks face the Brave Blossoms at Wembley.
“Ja, it’s very exciting,” said De Allende. “I’ve played a lot against the other Japanese players who play for the other clubs, but for me I’m more excited about playing against my Panasonic Wild Knights teammates just because I know how good they are and how tough they are, and I’m looking forward to that challenge.
“I’m going to go out there on Saturday, enjoy myself and make sure I represent my country the way I always do.”
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De Allende says the Springboks are preparing for the pace and precision of Japan’s trademark high-tempo attack, which troubled the Wallabies in Tokyo last weekend.
“We’ve been preparing this week for a fast game – that’s the way the Japanese team want to play the game – but we want to play our brand of rugby and we want to make sure that we play on our terms,” he said.
“It’s going to be exciting, it’s going to be physical and they’ve obviously got stuck into Australia over the weekend. Those of us who play in Japan always tell the other South African guys that the league here is not easy and it’s very tough.”
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De Allende singled out midfielders Charlie Lawrence and Dylan Riley as players capable of testing the Bok defence.
“I’ve played against Charlie Lawrence a few times in Japan now. He’s very quick and powerful and very strong on his feet. I’ve played a lot against Dylan Riley as well and he’s also deceptively fast and strong, and I’m looking forward to that challenge in the midfield.”
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While the Springboks have a tough northern tour ahead – including Tests against France, Ireland, Italy and Wales – De Allende says the focus remains firmly on Wembley.
“We’ll take it week by week. We won’t look too far ahead. Our challenge is Japan this weekend and we’ll take it head-on and go out guns blazing.
“We can’t be focusing on France now – we’ve got a very big Test against Japan coming up and we’ll give them all the respect they deserve.”
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Photo: Dirk Kotze/Gallo Images
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