Rob Herring Ready to Take on South Africa at Rugby World Cup
Key Highlights :
Rob Herring has been given the opportunity to play against his native South Africa at the Rugby World Cup, and the 33-year-old Ulster player is taking it all in and enjoying it. Herring’s mother and two of his three sisters have travelled from Cape Town for the tournament, while a number of his friends will be at Stade de France for the standout fixture in Pool B.
Herring has twice before lined up against his native country – Dublin victories in 2017 and last November – but will do so on the biggest stage for the first time. And he is in no doubt about where his relatives’ allegiances lie. “They’re all supporting Ireland,” Herring told the PA news agency. “All of my friends that are coming over and my family, they’re all in Irish jerseys so there will be no divided support. They will be fully behind us.”
Andy Farrell’s men are seeking to secure a quarter-final spot with victory over the defending champions on Saturday evening following bonus-point wins over Romania and Tonga. Herring has already made an impression at the tournament, having claimed tries in the 82-8 opening-weekend win over Romania and Saturday’s 59-16 success over Tonga.
“I keep saying to myself, I’ve got to enjoy these moments,” he said. “I’ve missed out before and I’ve worked so hard to be here over the last four years so I’m going to put in big performances when I get the opportunity and other than that I’m ready to take it all in and enjoy it.”
Herring’s rival hooker Dan Sheehan could return to contention for the South Africa showdown. The 25-year-old has been sidelined since sustaining a foot injury in last month’s warm-up win over England but Ireland’s coaching staff are confident he will be available. Back-rower Jack Conan (foot) and prop Finlay Bealham, who was forced off by a head knock against Tonga, will also be assessed ahead of the visit to the French capital.
Herring is looking forward to the challenge of taking on South Africa and is confident that the Irish team will keep getting better as the competition progresses. “Every week we think we need to step things up and it’s going to be like that going into the long run of the competition. We’ll keep getting better and it will be another big challenge for us.”
Rob Herring is ready to take on South Africa at the Rugby World Cup and is looking forward to the challenge. Herring’s mother and two of his three sisters have travelled from Cape Town for the tournament, while a number of his friends will be at Stade de France for the standout fixture in Pool B. Ireland’s coaching staff are confident that Sheehan, Conan and Bealham will all be available for the South Africa showdown, and Herring is confident that the Irish team will keep getting better as the competition progresses.
