‘What did Glasgow do?’ – Ireland not worried about altitude against Boks
GLASGOW DIDN’T EVEN need to use three of their eight replacements to get over the line at altitude in Pretoria last weekend.
We had presumed that any win in the famous Loftus Versfeld would require the bench to make a massive collective impact and while the Warriors did get notable bounce from the five players who came on, three of their ‘finishers’ were unused against the Bulls.
Andy Farrell might have hoped Leinster would be the team to put a dent in the narrative about the altitude in Pretoria being so hard to overcome, but Glasgow’s deserved victory in the URC decider was ideal just before his own Ireland side play there.
Munster did their part too, going to Pretoria in April and becoming the first European team to beat the Bulls at their citadel. Graham Rowntree’s men certainly needed bench impact that day but like Glasgow, they appeared unbothered by the altitude.
It’s the mindset Farrell’s Ireland are adopting as they set out for South Africa today, flying straight up to altitude in Johannesburg and setting up camp there before making the short trek to Pretoria for the opening Test against the Springboks on Saturday 6 July.
It will surely help to be at altitude in Johannesburg – which is higher above sea level than Pretoria – in the build-up to the game, but Ireland insist they haven’t made any specific plans to account for the physiological challenge of playing in thinner air.
“What did Glasgow do? Don’t make something that’s not,” says Ireland assistant coach Mike Catt.
“If you dwell on something, people are going to get worried by it.
“Whenever you put on an Irish shirt, whoever you are playing against, it’s hard, it’s tough, you have got to take yourself to a dark side.
Victor Costello and Franco Smith at Loftus when the Boks won in 1998. Billy Stickland / INPHO
Billy Stickland / INPHO / INPHO
“It’s no different when we turn up in Loftus on the 6th of July. You have to take yourself to a level and that’s the challenge – can you take yourself to a level where you are thinking correctly, you are making your decisions in the heat of the battle?
“It’s the same for both sides too. If you are talking about altitude, not everyone [in the Springboks squad] plays at altitude in South Africa, so don’t worry about it.”
As illustrated by Glasgow and Munster, South African sides are not unbeatable at Loftus.
The All Blacks have had consistent joy against the Springboks in Pretoria, winning on five of their six visits there.
Ireland have only played in Pretoria once in 1998, losing 33-0 to a Boks side that included current Glasgow head coach Franco Smith and Boks boss Rassie Erasmus, who was among the five South African try-scorers.
But this Ireland side are doing their best not to let the altitude factor be a factor at all.
Outside centre Garry Ringrose was part of the Leinster team that lost at Loftus two weekends ago and while he acknowledges that the difference is perceptible, he feels it wasn’t a major adjustment.
“Because it was my first time down in South Africa and also my first time at altitude, I didn’t really know what to expect,” says Ringrose.
“You feel it in the lungs and the legs maybe a little bit sooner than you would back home but then it just kind of plateaus as that for the rest of the game so it’s challenging, but once you get over it…
“I think a few guys who knew what to expect having experienced it before felt it was fine. Thankfully we’re out a little bit earlier this time in Joburg and we can adapt in some way to it.”
The Springboks set up shop in Pretoria yesterday after arriving back from their game against Wales in London. They will be hoping altitude will be more of a factor than Ireland are making out.
