Italy flyhalf Tommaso Allan knows exactly what awaits his Italian teammates when they face the Springboks in Turin on Saturday.
The nephew of former Bok hooker John Allan says the Azzurri are braced for “a war of physicality” against a Springbok side he calls the best in the world – and more dangerous than ever.
“We know they’re in great form and that it’s going to be a very tough game,” said Allan, who plays his club rugby for Perpignan.
“We’ve already started studying them – how they attack, how they defend – to understand how to put them under pressure. They’re the best in the world, and after what they did against France, they’ll be even more fired up.”
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The Azzurri enter the clash on a high after their stunning win over Australia, but Allan says the Boks’ physical edge and high-pressure defence make them a completely different challenge.
“We’ll train this week simulating a defence that rushes up like South Africa’s, to be as ready as possible,” he explained. “They’re very aggressive and rely on their physicality to dominate even in defence. We’ll have to work hard to counter that.”
Allan also identified South Africa’s kicking game as a key factor in the match.
“The Springboks kick more than any other team,” he said. “They use the nine and 10 to put pressure on you in the air, so we have to be good under the high ball and kick smart ourselves. You can’t give them easy counter-attack possession, their back three are so dangerous.”
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Despite the challenge, the playmaker says Italy are relishing the chance to measure themselves against the world champions.
“We know how difficult this game will be, but we also know what we’re capable of,” he added. “We’ve won an important match [against the Wallabies last weekend], but our focus immediately shifted to South Africa. We’ll need to raise our standards even higher to compete with them.”
Photo: Danilo Di Giovanni/Getty Images
