Damian De Allende

Damian de Allende has started two Rugby World Cup finals at inside centre and won both.

He is the physical anchor of the Springboks midfield — a 12 whose primary job is to get South Africa over the gainline from first phase and whose offloading out of contact is considerably better than his reputation as a battering ram suggests. The try he scored in the 2019 semi-final against Wales, breaking two tackles and staying alive through a third, is the clearest single illustration.

His partnership with Lukhanyo Am became one of the defining midfield combinations of the last decade, largely because the two jobs were so cleanly divided: de Allende took the contact, Am made the reads.

He came through Western Province and the Stormers, went to Panasonic Wild Knights in Japan, then to Munster where he became a genuine favourite, and later to Saitama.

He has been remarkably durable in a position that punishes durability, and has been first choice through two World Cup cycles.

He is into his mid-thirties now. South Africa have Andre Esterhuizen and a queue behind him, and the 2027 tournament is the obvious horizon for the decision.