Springbok centre Lukhanyo Am reckons they have more experience than they did when they won the World Cup in 2019 and expects that to work in their favour at this year’s tournament.
The Springboks will be out to defend their title at this year’s Rugby World Cup in France , which gets underway from September 8 and runs until October 28.
The Springboks, currently fourth in the World Rugby rankings, will be one of the favourites heading into the tournament because of their exploits in the last edition in Japan.
Am is expected to be given the Springbok captaincy for next month’s Rugby Championship in the absence of regular skipper Siya Kolisi, who is recovering from injury.
Kolisi, who led the Springboks to the 2019 Rugby World Cup title, is on the sidelines after suffering a knee injury in April and is racing against time to be fit for this year’s World Cup.
“It’s definitely a big blow for the team but he’s doing a lot of work with his rehab and he should be back in time for the World Cup,” added Am.
“But if things don’t go well, we do have a good core group of leaders. There are a lot of candidates who could step up and lead the side. If it comes my way, it does but there’s a lot of guys with experience who could lead the team.”
Am, who was one of the stars of the previous World Cup, setting up the famous try scored by Makazole Mapimpi in the final against England, reckons they will be stronger this year.
“I think four years ago we were definitely one of the underdogs,” said Am, who was recently appointed as the brand ambassador of Danone’s brand DanUp.
“This year, we are one of the teams that will be favourites. And as the defending champions we will be going out there to try and defend the World Cup, he said.
“But I think the biggest difference is that we have more of an experienced group this time around compared to what we had four years ago.
“I think the majority of the guys we had in 2019 will still be there this year, so that’s really good for the team.”
Am does admit that going into the tournament as defending champions means there will be a target on their back but expects the team to cope well with anything that comes their way.
“We know that it will be a really interesting World Cup this year because there’s no team that you can say are the clear favourite,” added Am.
“I think any team in the top five rankings could beat any side and that will make this a very good World Cup to watch.
“The pressure will always be there. I think as far as the rest of the world is concerned we don’t look that deep into it. But the pressure is definitely there,” said Am.
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