There are many rugby reasons to be looking forward to the November Internationals; whether Brian O'Driscoll can be replaced, if Ireland can get a Southern Hemisphere scalp or if we can survive without Cian Healy and Sean O'Brien. But there are some off-field aspects that we at balls HQ are really looking forward to, and so should you.
1. Heineke Meyer's Player Cam
There's no question that South Africa have improved a lot under head coach Heineke Meyer. Known as a man manager, perhaps it's his passion that rubs off on his players that make them so good. I'm just glad that some genius decided to point a camera at a coaches box and capture some of the pricelessly hilarious moments that Meyer produces in game. You can't imagine the cool Joe Schmidt reacting like this. Although, let's hope the glass is strong in the Aviva for when Australia come to town.
2. Awful Pronunciations Of South African Players
Attempting to pronounce Tebo "Ouja" Mohoje means that Ryle Nugent will earn his money on Saturday. Who knows, it's likely that Ryle will have fun with some of the South African names like Chiliboy Ralepelle or Tendai Mtwararira (the beast to you and I). For the record, Tebo's surname is pronounced "Moe-Hoe-Jay".
"Tebo Mohoje has no right to make that tackle after Chilboy Ralepelle put boot to ball, and you'd have to say, on the balance of play, it's no more than they deserve. It was sheer will and determination that got him into that position." - Not an actual Ryle Nugent quote. Yet.
3. A Rare George Hook Positive Moment
There aren't too many more moments for George Hook to grace our screens waxing lyrical about Ronan O'Gara before he retires after next years World Cup. He may be known for his criticisms or pessimistic views on Irish sport, although I found that he's merely attempting to keep our wandering minds from lofting too high off the ground. This moment during the RWC 2011 gave us a rare moment where he's got positivity coursing through his veins. He'll be sorely missed when he goes, so let's enjoy him while we can.
4. Stereotypes Everywhere
These South Africans are just coming to Dublin with their 6'6'' and 120kg forwards to just pound us into the ground before the Georgian weightlifters batter us up front next week as we get a win. It'll almost feel like a relief when the surfer boys of Australia come to town with their flash offloading game. The stereotypes come to town when the rest of the Southern Hemisphere teams tour up North, and we got in the act ourselves. Watch out for Brent Pope talking about the traditional play of each team that Ireland play, Georgia in particular.
5. The RTE Montage
The RTE rugby montage for every international series they show is always one of the most highly anticipated and memorable moments of the whole series. It gets the adrenaline pumping and the heart going, and is usually always masterfully done by Tom McGurk and co. Hopefully this year's will be no different.
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