Damian de Allende and Jesse Kriel will form the centre pairing against the Wallabies this weekend. Picture: Shaun Roy, BackpagePix
IT DOESN’T matter who he plays with, whether it’s his 2019 World Cup-winning midfield partner or the 2023 World Cup-winning one, Damian de Allende is happy to be able to partner two world-class centres for the Springboks.
De Allende and the in-form Jesse Kriel will man the Bok midfield on Saturday when they take on the Wallabies in Brisbane (6.30pm kick-off, SA time) and continue their record-breaking bond for the world champions. With Lukhanyo Am returning to form after an injury, he is knocking on the door to partner Doogz, as De Allende is known, again.
Head coach Rassie Erasmus has opted to keep the partnership between De Allende and Kriel going ‒ they will play together a record 31st time ‒ for Saturday’s opener at the Suncorp Stadium.
“I don’t know who between them is No.1 and No.2 in the world, but I don’t mind who I play with,” De Allende said at the team announcement on Tuesday.
“They could both be No.1, I think they are the best in the world. And I am just privileged to play next to them. I am glad they are on my outside, whether Jesse or Lukhanyo (Am).
“For Lukhanyo, it’s been a rough couple of seasons with weird injuries and some niggles. It’s been unfortunate but it was lovely to see him play against Portugal. I know we lost Andre (Esterhuizen) quite early but how Lukhanyo commanded the backline ‒ he covered 12 and 13 that game, and that was impressive. For him to do that in his first Test after a long time speaks volumes of him.”
De Allende is looking forward to the match-up with the Wallaby centres and admitted that they didn’t do well against their hosts in the past when playing in Australia.
In their last Test in Adelaide in 2022, the Aussies won 25-17 and De Allende said they want to avoid the same happening on Saturday.
“They surprised us with the last Test in Adelaide, not just their centres but the whole team.
“I’ve watched a bit of Super Rugby in Japan … so I have a good idea of how they want to play, the style. I also played against their centres before so I know what we can expect. I think we are a lot more prepared than the case was in 2022.”
De Allende and scrumhalf Cobus Reinach will play either side of rookie Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, who will start at flyhalf for the first time. The experienced centre knows he will be instrumental in keeping Feinberg-Mngomezulu composed next to him, especially if the Wallabies set out to target the flyhalf channel.
“It’s his first start, so obviously he will be nervous. I hope he is nice and composed because when he is, he can express himself and lead our forwards going forward. If he can do that, he will be amazing to watch.”
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