Kia ora, good morning and welcome to Newshub's live coverage of the Rugby World Cup pool clash between South Africa and Ireland at Stade de France, Saint-Denis.
This showdown between the defending champions and current world No.1 holds added interest to All Blacks fans, because the winners will likely end up facing New Zealand in the tournament quarter-finals next month.
Both have cruised through their two pool games so far, with the only comparison so far being their respective cricket scores against hopelessly outclassed Romania. Ireland opened their account 82-8 over their European rivals, while the Springboks held them scoreless 76-0.
The Irish have never progressed past the final eight at a World Cup and have yet to face Scotland in the pool, while South Africa have a relatively easy schedule to round the preliminaries.
South Africa hold a historic 18-8 record over Ireland, with one draw, although the Irish have won the last two meetings at Dublin, including 38-3 in 2017. They have never met at a World Cup.
Lock Eben Etzebeth is a big return for the 'Boks, but plenty of attention is focused on the seven forwards coming off their bench.
Join us at 8am Sunday for kickoff - don't forget daylight saving.
