Kwagga excited to play at ‘old home’

Springbok loose forward Kwagga Smith is excited to be back where it all started for him and is looking forward to representing his national side at Ellis Park for the first time during the second All Blacks Test on Saturday.

Smith began his senior career at the iconic ground back in 2014, representing the Lions, with him featuring over 80 times for them over five years before making the move to Japan.

“My senior career started with the Lions at Ellis Park. This will be the first time representing the

Springboks at Ellis Park, so for me it’s great to be back and able to play there again,” said Smith.

“I am from up here so it’s great to have the local support behind you. It’s a great place, I have good memories there and we are really excited for this game coming up.”

Since making his Bok debut in 2018, Smith has struggled to nail down a permanent place in the national set-up, but over the past two seasons has started to become an integral part of the bomb squad, with his versatility off the bench a big plus for the team.

“I think last year I already started building with the British and Irish Lions (series). It was great playing there and those were big games for me. I then just tried to build on those performances every weekend,” explained Smith.

“The end of year tour last year was good for me. I had a lot of exposure there where I started some of those games which was nice.

“But for me it’s just building on my performance every weekend and trying to get better. Test level is something else, it’s not the same as club level. It’s not always easy, but I am happy to build on my performance every weekend and try be the best player I can be.”