Springboks: Bongi Mbonambi gives blunt verdict on Rugby Championship decider against Argentina
Veteran Springboks hooker Bongi Mbonambi.
Springboks hooker Bongi Mbonambi has dismissed claims that the world champions will be the favourites when they take on Argentina in Saturday’s Rugby Championship decider at Allianz Stadium, Twickenham.
Ahead of the final round of this year’s prestigious Southern Hemisphere tournament, South Africa are setting the pace atop the standings, and there is little separating them and their arch rivals New Zealand, who play Australia earlier on Saturday.
Springboks in pole position in the standings
The Springboks have amassed 15 points while the All Blacks are one adrift and four clear of the Wallabies, with Los Pumas the only side out of the reckoning to lift the title on nine points.
The Boks moved to the top of the table after clinching an emphatic 67-30 over Argentina in last weekend’s corresponding Rugby Championship fixture in Durban.
Despite that result and being on opposite ends of the spectrum in this year’s tournament, Mbonambi is not underestimating their opponents and expects a tough challenge from their South American rivals.
“If you watch last week’s game, you’ll see that it was not as easy as the score may suggest,” he said.
“It definitely wasn’t a walk in the park in Durban, and over and above that, a lot can happen in a week in rugby, so we need to go out there and give our best on the field to get the result we want.”
The double Rugby World Cup winner was asked about South Africa being viewed as the favourites ahead of this weekend’s clash, which will see his team win back-to-back Rugby Championship titles for the first time and replied: “We don’t focus on those opinions, we approach each game day by day.
“When you think you are on top, you can be humbled quickly, so we’ll respect them going into this match.
“They’ll be hurting after last week, so we have a big challenge ahead, but we’ve done our homework, and our preparation has been going well.
Expecting ‘an arm-wrestle’
“That said, it’s definitely going to be an arm-wrestle of a match. We expect a proper retaliation from them on Saturday.”
Mbonambi is set to make his first appearance since the Boks’ Rugby Championship opener with Australia in Johannesburg off the replacements bench against Los Pumas.
He was not in action in the Boks’ four other matches in the tournament while attending to “personal matters” in South Africa.
With rookie front-rowers Jan-Hendrik Wessels and Marnus van der Merwe also getting chances to impress at hooker this season, along with the experienced Malcolm Marx, Mbonambi is looking forward to returning to the matchday squad.
“It’s always an honour and privilege to be in the team – when one is not in the set-up, you really miss it,” he said.
“There is competition in every position, but we love it, and the coaches have shown that if you are good enough, they’ll pick you. The key is that when you get your chance, you have to play as well as you can and do the job on the day.”
He added: “It’s been great to see how Jan-Hendrik and Marnus have been growing and developing as players, and the competition between everyone is fantastic.”