Boks: Are ye sneering at us?

SOUTH AFRICA captain Victor Matfield has primed Irish rugby fans for a backlash after hearing his side dismissed as a threat for this evening’s opening autumn international at the Aviva Stadium (5.30pm).

The world champions have been framed as vulnerable tourists after five defeats in six Tri-Nations matches this summer, 13 frontline players failing to make the trip through injury and head coach Peter de Villiers under pressure to turn things round after reports of a bust-up with his assistant coaches.

The Springboks arrived in Dublin on Thursday to be greeted with headlines that they were underdogs and in line for a fourth straight defeat in the capital while Irish bookmakers have the home side as 8/13 favourites.