Bok lock Jean Kleyn calls winner between Ireland and Scotland

Springboks lock Jean Kleyn has backed Ireland to come out on top in their Rugby World Cup Pool B showdown against Scotland on Saturday night in Paris.

The match will be the centre of attention this weekend as it will decide how the pool of death concludes.

Three sides from Pool B are in the running to make it through to the knockout stages; South Africa are first with 15 points, followed by Ireland with 14 points and in third place are the Scots who are on 10 points. The other two teams in the group, Tonga and Romania, know they are headed for an early exit after the weekend.

‘Animosity’

When the final whistle goes at the Stade de France around 11pm Saturday, the three sides hunting for a last-eight place will know their fate as only the top two go through.

Kleyn, who played five Tests for Ireland at the 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan, is expecting the rivalry between the two European nations to be at its peak with so much on the line.

“There’s a high level of attrition. There’s a little bit of animosity between the Irish and the Scots and there always has been, especially from a rugby perspective,” Kleyn said ahead of the match.

“At club level, you look at teams like Munster and Glasgow and there’s always been this underlying … I wouldn’t call it hatred … but there’s a little bit of knife in the back.

“There’s a real combative thing about it. For Ireland and Scotland (Tests), it’s even more so.

“It’s very much magnified at international level. Everything’s a little bit closer to the bone and everything’s a little bit more real. I think it’s going to be a serious match.”

‘They’re a good team at the moment’

Ireland and Scotland have been evenly matched in their history. They have played 140 games, with Ireland winning 69 while Scotland have won 66 with five draws along the way. Ireland though have been the dominant force in recent years.

Both sides have their best teams in the professional era at the tournament in France and will go into the match confident of getting a win.

Quizzed how he sees the match panning out, Kleyn put his weight behind Ireland — his former team.

“We’re probably going to see Ireland win, but just because the Irish beat us last week I’d say I’d like to see Scotland win over them,” said Kleyn with a laugh.

“No, realistically speaking, we’ll probably see Ireland come out victorious there. They’re a very good team at the moment.”

The match kicks off at 9pm Saturday.