Springbok loose forward Kwagga Smith, who plays club rugby in Japan for the Shizuoka Blue Revs, said he expects a challenging end of the year tour, but he said it was a great opportunity for the team to measure themselves against five different opposition teams.
Smith looked forward to the challenge this weekend and admitted that although it was a longer November tour than usual, it would be a great test for the Boks.
“Five matches are a lot, but it’s a great challenge for the squad because we need to be on form every weekend. All the Test matches will also be tough, not just France and Ireland. But that’s where we want to be. We want to measure ourselves and perform well as a team.”
The versatile Bok loose forward was impressed with Wembley Stadium after he and a few team-mates attended the Rugby League match between England and Australia earlier in the week.
“A few of our Japanese-based players that arrived earlier in the week watched a league game at Wembley Stadium, and the pitch looks quite fast, which could suit the Japanese players who want to play fast rugby,” said Smith.
“That said, it looks like a good pitch to play on, so I think it will be a good contest. The stadium is amazing, and it was a good game to watch, and also to get a feeling for the stadium and how it is over there.”
With the iconic stadium boasting a hybrid pitch, Smith said, although he had never played on such a surface, many of his teammates have in the Vodacom United Rugby Championship, and will know what to expect.
“A whole lot of Vodacom URC teams have played on hybrid pitches and also in the Premiership, so it may be different for us this week, but that will certainly help going into the match,” said Smith.
While the players arrived in different stages over the last few days, with many players only arriving in London on Monday morning from their respective franchises and clubs, the hard-working loose forward was grateful that a few players already had a few training sessions under their belts early this week.
“After the Rugby Championship, the Japanese-based players had time off and then we flew to London last Tuesday, so we had a few days of training already, and we are really looking forward to the match and playing against Japan,” said Smith.