‘It's going to take best performance of this group’s lifespan’ – Peter O’Mahony insists Ireland are ready for Boks

The Corkman said it would take Ireland’s best performance of the Andy Farrell era to take a 1-0 lead over the world champions.

Much has been made of Ireland’s readiness at the end of a bruising season, but O’Mahony says they’re hungry for more.

“People, I’d imagine, are talking about it being a long season but I’ve never seen a fresher group of people,” he said.

South Africa tour daily - July 5th

“Unfortunately, we were all out at semi-final level in the URC, but it gave us a nice week to get organised and hit the ground running. We got into camp a little bit earlier.

“It would be wrong or strange if you didn’t stand up a little bit taller when you walk into this Ireland camp.

“It’s a great environment, a great place to be and it’s funny, any of the niggles, the sore bits, fade away in this environment because of what it means to you . . . it’s an unbelievably energised group.

“It’s going to take probably our very best performance of this group’s lifespan to win over here, but we’ve ticked off a lot of big occasions and that’s why you play the game, for Test matches and opportunities like this. It’s very exciting.”

The world champions have been making plenty of noise in the build-up but O’Mahony prefers to do his talking on the pitch.

“Not particularly,” he said when asked if he’d been bothered by the comments of Damian de Allende, Eben Etzebeth and Cheslin Kolbe.

“You’d always pick up a few bits here and there from whatever’s been talked about, but I don’t take a huge amount of notice to what’s gone on.

“This trip is difficult enough for us, coming to such a rugby stronghold, two huge Tests. Your focus has got to be on your training and preparation, so I’ve had my hands full.”

Familiarity, he concedes, has helped breed the contempt that has built this rivalry into a modern phenomenon.

“A lot of the Munster lads have been coached by Jacques [Nienaber] as well [as the Leinster contingent], obviously Rassie, Jerry [Flannery], Felix [Jones] has left them, guys like RG [Snyman] and Damian playing with us,” O’Mahony said.

“They’ve a great insight into what we’ve done, and likewise we know some of their people very intimately as well, and have spent a lot of time with them rugby-wise.

“I suppose it would be hard to argue that it doesn’t add to wanting to win, and the whole Test match, it adds to it.”

O’Mahony is winning his 106th cap but this is his first time playing for Ireland in South Africa.

“It’s a religion for these people over here, the lift their team has given them over the last two World Cups and going back further a long time before that,” he said.

“I’d look back to the 1995 World Cup, some of the lads on my team won’t be old enough to remember it.

“I can remember it being a special time in rugby, so I’m probably out of place saying I know how much it means to them. I probably don’t, but I know it means a hell of a lot.

“I’d imagine their support will be huge for them and we need to understand that.”