The former Springboks captain – who sprinkled a bit of stardust over Rodney Parade 20 years ago – will obviously be rooting for a victory for the world champions.
But when he sits down to watch the game on TV at his home near Durban, the one-time Black and Ambers star will feel more than a twinge of pride in two-thirds of the Wales back row – Aaron Wainwright and Taine Basham of the Dragons.
One thing that brought a smile to Teichmann’s face last week was the fielding of an entire back row from Rodney Parade against the All Blacks, when Wales picked the Dragons’ trio of Ross Moriarty, Basham and Wainwright against New Zealand.
S4C: Saturday, 8.30pm – Wales v South Africa
Extended highlights from the Principality Stadium.
The former No.8, who lifted the Principality Cup with Newport as their inspirational skipper in 2001, enthuses: “It was nice to hear that the guys from Newport are being recognised. I think I played against Moriarty’s father, Paul. He was a really tough character.
“I’ve got very fond memories of my time in Newport and it’s good to see the guys from there stepping up to international rugby. I still recall with a lot of affection my time there and especially the people. They were incredibly supportive and I’ll never forget the time we lifted the Principality Cup in 2001.
“It was amazing to see how much it meant to the whole town. I’ll remember that noise forever. It will be exciting to see the Dragons up against the Sharks this season.”
For Wainwright and Basham to gain the upper hand, they will need to defuse the threat of another Springboks legend, their current captain Siya Kolisi. He may not have led his team to the record-breaking run of consecutive Test victories that Teichmann did back in 1998, when he managed 17, but Kolisi did lift the World Cup in 2019, something Teichmann never managed.
Not surprisingly, the former captain is a big fan of the current skipper and reckons he is at the top of his form going into battle against Wales.
“His last three games were exceptional. He was certainly standing up and leading by example. He has also been doing that off the field. He is a huge figure and South Africa is very fortunate to have him. So, too, are the Sharks,” he said.
“He has handled himself exceptionally well. I’ve had the pleasure of meeting him and he’s a top man. He has done South Africa proud.”
Teichmann is backing South Africa to win in Cardiff for the first time since 2013, but was left unimpressed by the rugby served up by the Springboks in their turgid series against the Lions. Nor was he thrilled by his countrymen’s grim World Cup semi-final victory over Wales two years ago in Japan.
“That World Cup semi-final was a shocking game of rugby. Both sides just kicked the ball away,” he added.
But the 54-year-old remains impressed by the way the current Springboks can seem to flick a switch and turn from a grim kick-dominated outfit, into a much more free-flowing and attack-minded team.
“They seem to get into a certain way of playing, but still then be capable of suddenly turning things around – from kicking to running. But in the last game against New Zealand there was a much better balance between kicking correctly and keeping the ball in hand,” he said.
“Then, all the good stuff you get from Springbok rugby – the physicality and the passion – you get to build that on top. Under Warren Gatland, there was a lot of kicking with the Wales team and that’s not necessarily the best way for a Wales team to play.
“I’m hoping they can go back to the more attacking game they played a few years ago, stringing out the phases which Wales has always been renowned for.
“They will be hurting from that result last week and they will be wanting to come back strongly against the world champions.”
