White warns 'naive' South Africans ahead of Champs Cup debut: 'Like playing a Test every Saturday'

Rugby World Cup-winning former Springbok coach Jake White has compared the Champions Cup to Test matches, as South African teams debut in the competition on Saturday.

"The Champions Cup is the equivalent of the Champions League in football - competing in it is like playing a Test every Saturday," he told AFP.

His Bulls team face Lyon and Exeter this month, the Stormers meet Clermont and London Irish, while the Sharks play Harlequins and Bordeaux-Begles.

When New Zealand quit the four-nation Super Rugby in 2020 amid coronavirus and player discontent about lengthy flights across multiple time zones, South Africa needed a new 'home'.

They switched to Europe and debuted in the United Rugby Championship (URC) last season with the Stormers beating the Bulls in a thrilling final.

Top-eight finishes in the URC league qualified both sides and the Sharks for the premier European competition, the Champions Cup, which La Rochelle won last season.

White knows European clubs intimately having guided Montpellier to Europe's second-tier Challenge Cup title in 2016, nine years after leading South Africa to World Cup glory in France.

"We will be coming up against teams packed with internationals. European teams do not just draw from the player pool of their country - they have stars from all the top rugby nations.

"I fear South Africans are a little naive about what lies ahead. Champions Cup teams are much stronger than those in the URC.

"They boast packs that weigh more than a thousand kilogrammes, they have brilliant backs. I think we are in for a bit of a wake-up call from this weekend."

Puzzling refereeing

South African players have often been puzzled by refereeing in the URC and White admitted it was an issue.

"French Top 14 referees interpret