The fans helped us do it, says Kolisi
A partisan and noisy crowd helped to carry South Africa to a rousing 23-12 win over Australia in a Rugby Championship clash in Port Elizabeth, Bok captain Siya Kolisi said.
The tone for the match was set when the 41,300 fans at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium lustily joined in as music legend Yvonne Chaka Chaka sang the national anthem ahead of the kick-off on Saturday.
The countries were playing for the Nelson Mandela Challenge Shield and the clash commemorated the life of former president Nelson Mandela, who would have turned 100 this year.
A fireworks display and dancers helped to get the spectators in the spirit.
Disappointed Australian coach Michael Cheika described the stadium as a “cauldron of noise”.
The hard-earned win also enabled South Africa to stretch their unbeaten record at the stadium to six matches and bolster the Bay’s reputation of being a fortress for the Boks.
“It was beautiful here today at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium,” former Grey boy Kolisi said. “The vibe started when we got to the airport more than a week ago to start our preparations to face Australia.
“It is always like that here in Port Elizabeth – people love rugby on this side of the world.
“Our open training sessions were amazing in how the people came out to support us.
“We could feel that support during the Test, specially when times were tough.
“Our team could hear them when they did the Mexican wave and it was just beautiful.
“It means a lot to us as a team – we really appreciate it because it helped us at times during a tough Test against Australia.” Fans waved their flags and danced into the night.
Clad in Bok supporters gear from top to toe, Grahamstown’s Duane Walters said the team had played with a lot of character and he was happy they had kept their unbeaten run at the stadium going.
“Being in the stadium was a different experience,” he said.
“The crowd was incredible – that Mexican wave going both ways really got the team going.
“I think the boys played beautifully tonight.
“There are still a few areas to improve on, but I believe they are unbeaten at this stadium so I’m happy they managed to keep that streak going.”
Alton Prince, who travelled from George to watch the match, thanked the team for “putting their bodies on the line”.
“I also just want to ask Saru [South African Rugby Union] to please bring the All Blacks to PE next year so we can beat them here,” he said excitedly.
A distraught Wallaby supporter, who identified himself only as Mr Jacobs, was not happy with his team’s performance and said they would need to have a serious discussion on how to improve heading into the World Cup.
Port Elizabeth showed that when it comes to staging a big event, it does not have to stand back for any venue in South Africa. The success of the Ironman World Championship and Saturday’s rugby Test between South Africa and Australia showcased all the best attractions Port Elizabeth has to offer. What made the Springbok win even more special was that it stretched their unbeaten record at Nelson Mandela Bay stadium to six matches. The game was played as a tribute to the 100th anniversary of the great statesman Nelson Mandela, after whom the stadium is named. The teams were playing for the Nelson Mandela Challenge Shield.
To honour his legacy, SA Rugby organised a special programme of prematch events to pay homage to Madiba.
As usual the anthem was sung with great gusto by the near-capacity crowd. Several players and officials have mentioned that nowhere in South Africa is the national anthem sung with such enthusiasm as it is in the Bay.
It was a special moment for Zwide-born Siya Kolisi, who received a standing ovation from the fans when he led his troops out into battle for the crunch Rugby Championship showdown.
Although the championship was won by the All Blacks in the early hours of Sunday, the Bay Test has set the scene perfectly for next Saturday’s showdown against archrivals New Zealand at the Loftus Versfeld stadium in Pretoria.
With the World Cup looming next year, the Boks are hoping to build up a head of steam and coach Rassie Erasmus would like nothing better than a win over the old enemy who are grouped with South Africa for Japan.
The Boks have blown hot and cold this season and Erasmus will want his team to gain more continuity as the buildup to the Japanese showpiece gathers pace.
Thanks to the wonderful support shown by the Bay’s rugby-loving public, the city can look forward to hosting many more Test matches of this quality in future. There is no doubt the Bay has the capacity to put on a rousing show and the Test was a celebration for rugby and the city.