Ulster and Ireland centre Stuart McCloskey has offered a candid take on the growing Bok-Ireland rivalry, suggesting the animosity runs deeper on the South African side. Speaking on the For The Love of Rugby podcast, McCloskey pointed to the URC's role in building familiarity — and friction — between the two nations, and acknowledged that Ireland beating the Boks in the 2023 World Cup pool stage probably stoked things further. He also took a light dig at South African supporters for adopting 'Zombie' as their own anthem, a song Irish fans had claimed first. The piece is a breezy but revealing window into how this rivalry is perceived from the Irish dressing room — and whether the needle is mutual.
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McCloskey: 'South Africans just hate the Irish'
Stuart McCloskey says South Africans 'just hate the Irish' more than it goes the other way, pointing to the URC, the 2023 World Cup clash, and even a stolen anthem as fuel for a rivalry he sees as increasingly replacing England and New Zealand as Ireland's defining one.
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