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Cape Town - Legendary former Ireland centre Gordon D'Arcy believes his countrymen will have enough in their armoury to beat South Africa in Dublin on Saturday.
D'Arcy, who played 82 Tests for Ireland between 1999 and 2015, expressed his views via a column for the Irish Times.
In the column D'Arcy called the Springboks a “troubled” side and singled out four danger men among the Irish ranks.
“Just how Joe Schmidt combines Johnny Sexton, Bundee Aki, Joey Carbery and Robbie Henshaw on Saturday should provide a glimpse of Ireland’s future path because how we play now is how we intend to succeed later,” he wrote.
“I expect to see them all on the pitch at the same time, at some stage, against the troubled Springboks.”
The Springboks are currently fifth on World Rugby’s official rankings - one position below Ireland - and while admitting that they can be a dangerous outfit, D’Arcy doesn’t think they’ll have enough in the tank to beat Ireland on Saturday.
“The Springboks almost atoned for the 57-0 defeat to New Zealand in Cape Town last month with a return to their most cherished value. Physicality. It wasn’t enough to beat the world champions. It was a highly emotive performance that seems unlikely to be replicated on a cold November evening in Dublin. Ireland, and our flood of returning Lions, should beat South Africa,” D’Arcy continued.
CLICK HERE to read Gordon D'Arcy’s full column on the Irish Times’ website
