Ox raring to go 'blow for blow' with Pumas pack
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Ox Nche has called on the Springboks to “land the first vital blow” against Argentina as he prepares to duel a European champion in the scrum on Saturday. DYLAN JACK reports.
Nche will start in a new-look scrum alongside Malcolm Marx and Thomas du Toit when the Springboks look to wrap up the Rugby Championship title in Santiago del Estero.
The World Cup-winning loosehead prop has one previous experience of playing in Argentina, powering the Bomb Squad in a 36-20 win in 2022, but has faced the Los Pumas pack three times in his 35-Test career.
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“We’ve mentioned during the week in our team meetings, that if you come to Argentina, it’s pretty similar to South Africa. The only difference is probably the language,” Nche said. “It does feel like home.
“To play against a pack like Argentina’s, they have a lot of pride for their country. They play for their people, similar to us.
“The one thing is you have to make sure, if your opponent goes low, you go lower, if he goes lower, then you have to go lower than that. Whatever you think you are going to give, he is probably going to give back to you. Whatever you think you can take, he can take as well.
“For us, it’s about going blow for blow, making sure you’re the one that lands that first vital blow. You have to stand your ground and just keep going through the pain and the challenges.”
Argentina are flying high after claiming a record-breaking 67-27 victory, having scalped the All Blacks in Wellington in the opening round, and will be desperate to avoid a defeat to keep their hopes of a first southern hemisphere title alive.
“Our theme is to expect the unexpected,” Nche said. “They’ve grown their set-piece game, especially the lineout. They try new things.
“I think they are going to be a massive challenge. They can maul and play off the top, play around the front or the back of the lineout. So you can see that they have been putting a lot of work into their set pieces.
“In terms of the scrum, they have a lot of guys who have been playing at the highest level for quite some time. They have a lot of strengths and work really well together. They just all come together and are very consistent.”
Among Argentina’s front row brigade – and likely to be Nche’s direct opponent in the scrum on Saturday – is La Rochelle star Joel Sclavi.
The 30-year-old is one of the feared scrummagers in Europe and helped the French club with the Champions Cup in 2022.
Weighing 137kg but also at an awkward height of 1,9m, Sclavi poses a unique challenge for Nche.
“He has a similar frame to Frans [Malherbe]. He’s pretty wide and tall. He has a massive chest, so it’s very hard to get under him,” Nche said.
“He’s been playing very well for La Rochelle in the Top 14 and they are good at the set piece, especially the scrums.
“If he gets they lay on you, it’s gonna be a long day. With his big frame, it just makes it difficult to get underneath him. He knows how to scrum, he’s very experienced and he’s been playing on both sides of the scrum for a very long time.
“It’s going to be a very good challenge.”
Photo: Daniel Jayo/Getty Images
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