Kolisi draws positives but Boks fall short on title
Skipper aims high for momentum to stay for end-of-year European tour
After missing out on the Rugby Championship title, Springboks captain Siya Kolisi remains optimistic and wants his side to take their current momentum into their European tour.
Heading into their last match of the Rugby Championship against Argentina at Kings Park in Durban on Saturday, the Boks needed to win by 39 points to beat New Zealand to the title. However, the Boks managed to get a 17-point win, defeating Los Pumas 38-21 to finish second.
The match against Los Pumas was the last match the Boks will play at home this season. Despite falling short of winning the Championship, there were positives for the Boks in the southern hemisphere competition. Kolisi said they will take the positive to their overseas tour in November, where they will take on Ireland, France, Italy and England.
“We had some great, great moments in the Rugby Championship, and we also had some weak moments. We were looking for consistency,” said Kolisi.
“We know we can win against anyone in the world on our day, but today was a big step forward because it was the third win in a row and we want to take that momentum with us into the end-of-year tour.”
For Bok Springbok coach Jacques Nienaber, this year’s Rugby Championship was the toughest period he’s been through as the head honcho. Without the counsel of director of rugby Rassie Erasmus, he had to make some tough decisions managing the team on and off the field, and facing heavy criticism. He was disappointed to miss out on the Rugby Championship but found comfort in that he used 34 players and introduced youngster Canan Moodie to Test rugby and unleashed Damian Willemse. “We built some squad depth. Some players got some experience but that wasn’t the main aim – which was to win the Rugby Championship and we fell short on that. But there were some positives to take out of it.”