Springbok captain Siya Kolisi has warned England that there will be no complacency from his team in the third Test at Newlands on Saturday.
The Springboks have already won the series 2-0 after victories in Johannesburg and Bloemfontein‚ and despite making five changes‚ their goal is to finish the job with a 3-0 win.
Kolisi‚ who has led the Boks through the series‚ has been looking for any signs of complacency among his teammates‚ but is satisfied there were none.
“We have spoken about that [warding off complacency] and we know we can’t relax”, Kolisi said.
“We have seen over the past two matches how good England can be and how much trouble we can be in if we are not 100 percent switched on. We have learnt from the way we have started the last two games where we fell behind early.”
With almost two months until their opening Rugby Championship match against Argentina in Durban‚ Kolisi doesn’t want the team to stew on a loss with such a long time in-between.
“We have got to finish off properly and leave a good taste in the mouth”, Kolisi said. “It is not just a case of winning or losing‚ but ensuring we go into the break knowing that we gave it our best shot and left everything out there on the field.”
Kolisi also had a lot of praise for his lieutenants during the series such as No.8 Duane Vermeulen and flyhalf Handre Pollard‚ who have helped with the leadership burden.
“The job of the captaincy will be tougher if you make it all about yourself”, said Kolisi. “You have to allow others to help you. You have to make it about the team.
“Duane has been huge‚ in terms of supporting me and in terms of his role on the field. I’m lucky that everyone has supported me.
“I haven’t chatted that much beyond speaking to the ref. I’ve been confident that the other guys would chip in when necessary.
“I was very nervous about the captaincy when Rassie first approached me. The whole country is watching and it can be quite overwhelming.
“The coach has been very good in terms of narrowing it down and ensuring that I focus on my job on the field. I’ve probably never been better prepared for a single game than I was for that first Test in Johannesburg. A lot of work has gone into this campaign.”
Kolisi warns England that there will be no Bok complacency
Image: Petri Oeschger/Gallo Images
Springbok captain Siya Kolisi has warned England that there will be no complacency from his team in the third Test at Newlands on Saturday.
The Springboks have already won the series 2-0 after victories in Johannesburg and Bloemfontein‚ and despite making five changes‚ their goal is to finish the job with a 3-0 win.
Kolisi‚ who has led the Boks through the series‚ has been looking for any signs of complacency among his teammates‚ but is satisfied there were none.
“We have spoken about that [warding off complacency] and we know we can’t relax”, Kolisi said.
“We have seen over the past two matches how good England can be and how much trouble we can be in if we are not 100 percent switched on. We have learnt from the way we have started the last two games where we fell behind early.”
With almost two months until their opening Rugby Championship match against Argentina in Durban‚ Kolisi doesn’t want the team to stew on a loss with such a long time in-between.
“We have got to finish off properly and leave a good taste in the mouth”, Kolisi said. “It is not just a case of winning or losing‚ but ensuring we go into the break knowing that we gave it our best shot and left everything out there on the field.”
Kolisi also had a lot of praise for his lieutenants during the series such as No.8 Duane Vermeulen and flyhalf Handre Pollard‚ who have helped with the leadership burden.
“The job of the captaincy will be tougher if you make it all about yourself”, said Kolisi. “You have to allow others to help you. You have to make it about the team.
“Duane has been huge‚ in terms of supporting me and in terms of his role on the field. I’m lucky that everyone has supported me.
“I haven’t chatted that much beyond speaking to the ref. I’ve been confident that the other guys would chip in when necessary.
“I was very nervous about the captaincy when Rassie first approached me. The whole country is watching and it can be quite overwhelming.
“The coach has been very good in terms of narrowing it down and ensuring that I focus on my job on the field. I’ve probably never been better prepared for a single game than I was for that first Test in Johannesburg. A lot of work has gone into this campaign.”
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