Sept 8 (Reuters) - South Africa number eight Jasper Wiese is relishing the physical contest against old foes New Zealand in unfamiliar surroundings in Baltimore on Saturday as the battered and bruised sides meet for the fourth weekend in a row.
The Springboks lead the four-game Rugby's Greatest Rivalry series 2-1 heading into the final fixture, with both sides having lost key players to injury in what has been an intriguing sequence of matches full of blood and thunder.
Wiese is the battering ram for the South Africans with his strong carries and will be asked to go hard again at the All Blacks defence. Not that he minds.
"The physical contest is always the nicest part for me," Wiese told reporters on Tuesday. "Sometimes you are getting dominated, and sometimes you dominate. You won’t win every contact point.
"The All Blacks are a physical team, we know that. I am always sore after the game but you take a few painkillers on the Sunday and get the body going again on the Monday. Then rinse and repeat."
New Zealand will be without their skipper Ardie Savea after he dislocated a shoulder in the Springboks’ 29-24 win in Soweto last weekend. Wiese admits that will be a loss for their rivals, but says whoever replaces him will be a tough opponent too.
"Ardie is a massive pillar in their team, but I don’t think our preparation changes much," he said. "The other loose forwards there are just as experienced as he is and have played in big games as well. We give all our opponents respect.
"They are going to be desperate in this game, we know that is coming. They are going to come out guns blazing this weekend."
Wiese admits walking around Baltimore is not quite the same experience as Pretoria or Auckland in terms of rugby fans.
"We have not spent a lot of time outside the hotel yet," he said. "We had a few people recognise us, not me necessarily but the guys I walk with.
"Hopefully we can show them this weekend what rugby is about. The sport is not as big here, but those in the stadium will see a game with heart."
The Springboks named their team on Monday, making two changes to the starting XV.
(Reporting by Nick SaidEditing by Toby Davis)
