Rassie Erasmus insists he hasn't picked Leinster's Jason Jenkins for the Springboks just to pick his brains on Ireland.
Jenkins spent all last year with Munster before joining Leinster in the summer and, after an injury-disrupted spell with the Reds, he has been on fire for the Blues in the early part of the season.
The 6'8" second row has been recalled for the first time since his Test debut four years ago.
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Asked if his inclusion was helping the Springboks to gain insights on Ireland before Saturday's Autumn series clash at the Aviva Stadium, former Munster supremo Erasmus made a strong defence of his selection.
"Insights...it's me knowing the Irish set-up very well, but then the Irish players and coaches know me very well," said the 49-year-old.
"I know the question of Jason Jenkins comes up but you can look at it the other way around as well. He's going back to Leinster and he will obviously know a lot about the Boks.
"It's something that people always ask but we'd never pick a guy for that reason, it would be stupid to bugger around a guy's career.
"Then to answer your specific question on insights, there's a lot of plans that we made and analysis we did for them but they will have done the same.
"It will be great to see on Saturday which of those two plans and tactics work. We're fairly confident but we know they're fairly confident. It will be a great match-up."
Erasmus returns to the coaches box on Saturday for the first time since September 30 last year, when he was slapped with a ban on six charges regarding criticism of Australian referee Nic Berry after the first Test against the Lions in July 2021.
That criticism included the release of an hour-long video in which he analysed what he claimed were numerous mistakes by Berry.
Famously, it was at the Aviva Stadium after the Boks' hammering at the hands of Ireland when the sides last met in 2017 that compelled Erasmus and Jacques Nienaber to leave Munster to return home to South Africa.
Taking the reins, they turned the Boks into world champions in two years.
"We got a proper hiding, 38-3," said Erasmus of the last meeting. "But the next three years, things got better and we managed to win the World Cup.
"I guess five years since then, both teams have changed dramatically in terms of how they do things and how they play. Obviously, the way Ireland have played and the teams they have beaten to be where they are currently, they're doing a lot of things right on and off the field.
"But we're looking forward to it, we're in for stiff competition. The Irish crowd are respectful and know how to enjoy both sides of the game. It's going to be a good one to watch."
Boks pack enforcer Eben Etzebeth said he was relishing the challenge of taking on the world's top ranked side in Dublin.
"We saw on their tour of New Zealand that they've got quite a strong maul, they maul quite a bit," he said.
"Then also they've got a good scrum, they won a couple of scrum penalties in that series. They're very clinical at the breakdown, they know exactly their job and they do their job very well."
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