All Black Isaac Ross will play his first Test against South Africa on Saturday, and he is expecting a physical onslaught from the Springbok 'bullies' when the two traditional rivals meet in a Tri-Nations clash in Bloemfontein.

New Zealand were taken off-guard by the Wallabies in the opening quarter of their opening Tri-Nations Test last weekend, and second row forward Isaac Ross is expecting another fiery confrontation in South Africa.

"We were a bit surprised by the physicality against Australia, it was another level up from our games against the French and Italy," All Blacks lock Isaac Ross told reporters on Monday.

"And that's a real trait of the Boks, they love to be physical and try to bully you, so we're going to have to front up even more this weekend," he added.

Centre Ma'a Nonu and hooker Keven Mealamu echoed Ross's thoughts, and are bracing themselves to face the brute force of the Springboks in their own back yard.

"South Africa will be physical, they always are at home. They played very well against the British and Irish Lions, especially in the first two games. They were physical at the breakdowns, had a good defensive line and they showed they can kick pretty accurately with Morne Steyn there at flyhalf," centre Nonu said.

"We've never had an easy game against South Africa, I love coming here, there's nothing better than the crowds giving you a go and the huge stadiums. Games against South Africa are always very physical and very fast," said Mealamu, who is tipped to start on Saturday after coming off the bench against Australia.

Ross, who has been a revelation for the All Blacks since making his debut a few weeks back, will play his first Test against South Africa on the weekend. The lock was part of an All Black lineout which struggled against the Wallabies, and he knows that his team will need to improve if they are to compete with a Springbok side that has long been considered to have the world's best lineout.

"It's definitely going to be a difficult challenge against the Springbok lineout with Victor Matfield running the ship. Our lineouts didn't really go to plan, but this week we will keep plugging away and working on our strengths," Ross said.

Despite the areas of concern for the All Blacks, Ross said that his team showed tremendous spirit in coming from behind to beat the Wallabies, and has no doubt that they will pose the World Champions a few problems when the world's top two sides meet.

The All Blacks recovered from a 13-3 deficit to beat the Wallabies and Ross said this showed that the spirit is in the side to ensure they pose a threat against the world champions.

"We showed a lot of heart and courage against Australia, to come back from conceding a try in the first three minutes," Ross said.

365

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