LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 31: Zachary Porthen of South Africa during the South African national men's rugby team captain's run at Latymer Sports Ground on October 31, 2025 in London, England. (Photo by Paul Harding/Gallo Images)
Zachary Porthen’s debut for the Springboks was a “dream come true”, but the tighthead prop says his next step is to stay in the setup.
Porthen became the youngest prop to make his Test debut for South Africa at the age of 21.
He had a fairly good outing during South Africa’s 61-7 victory over Japan at Wembley Stadium, scrumming well and making some cleans and tackles before he was replaced by Wilco Louw early in the second half.
‘I am hopeful I can stay here’
The former Junior Springbok captain said his call-up to the national side came four to five years earlier than he hoped, though this was largely thanks to injuries to Frans Malherbe, Vincent Koch and Neethling Fouché, Thomas du Toit’s unavailability, and Asenathi Ntlabakanye’s ban.
Porthen said his debut felt “unreal”.
“I think the way I put it is like a dream come true,” he said. “To be on the same field as all those guys, I could only dream of it and now it’s actually happening. It’s crazy.”
The prop said he had expected to establish himself more at the Stormers before earning his Springbok call-up, but “God had a different plan and now we are here”.
“I am grateful to be here and I am hopeful I can stay here. That is the next step.”
Porthen says he will only get better
Porthen said he had expected Test rugby to be faster than what he was used to, and it was.
“The level of rugby was completely different. But it was nice that I got this first taste, and I’ll be a bit better next time because I know what to expect.
“What gave me confidence were the guys around me. They prepped me well and kept reminding me through the week: ‘Zach, don’t worry. We’ve got your back. If something goes wrong, it’s a team thing. We’ve got your back.’”
He said he thought he “did alright” during the match. He had instances he could be proud of as well as areas he could work on.
“I am going to go back to the drawing board and learn. I spoke to coach Daan Human. He says we’ve got a couple of things we need to get into.”
Porthen said he would take it one step at a time and listen to his coaches.
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