Springbok captain Siya Kolisi has said that although the previous two weeks have been difficult, they have not been the most challenging he’s had as leader of the side.
Kolisi: Boks will be boosted by past success against All Blacks
Despite two consecutive losses to the Wallabies, Kolisi remains adamant that the team is in a good place and that there isn’t overwhelming pressure on him as captain.
It is only the second time since Kolisi was appointed captain that the Springboks have lost back-to-back Test matches; the last time ironically also coming before they faced New Zealand in 2018 in a match they went on to win.
“I don’t know. I’m not sure if it’s been the most challenging period as captain. I suppose it’s been more of a disappointing week or so. We don’t want to lose two weeks in a row, but I do believe that we’ve faced tougher challenges previously.
“What makes the process easier is that we really view things on a week-by-week basis. Our main focus is just looking at what we’ve done wrong in the previous games and how we can improve it.”
The Boks will know that they will need to be much improved as the Test against the All Blacks looms. The lethargy that typified their previous two performances needs to be expelled before they take the field as they face the monumental task of winning the 100th Test between the two countries.
“To be honest, in the last two games we kind of messed it up ourselves. Things we normally get right we didn’t. So this week’s really been about getting on top of things again that we normally do so well and not deviating from what the plan is.
“Look it’s always tough to lose two in a row, but you don’t dwell on it. We want to win every game and to do that we need to get our stuff right this weekend.”
Kolisi is not letting the enormity of the occasion affect his players and has reminded them that the All Blacks are just another team, one the Boks have beaten before and will know they can beat again.
“I told the guys it’s something we’ve done before, it’s not something we’ve never done. This is another Test match. We take confidence into it.”
