WeeklySA_AdminRUGBY CHAMPIONSHIP: The match in Mbombela will be the Boks last showing in South Africa for the year 2024
By Sports Reporter
Siya Kolisi said the Springboks want to cap off Eben Etzebeth’s 128th Test for South Africa on Saturday with a Rugby Championship title victory in Nelspruit.
Etzebeth is set to become the most-capped Springbok of all time when the world champions line up against Argentina at Mbombela Stadium.
A win for Rassie Erasmus’ charges will see Kolisi lift the Rugby Championship trophy for the first time since 2019. The Bok captain said the fact that no player in the current Bok squad has ever won the full edition of the competition – a feat last achieved by SA in 2009 as well as in 2004 and 1998 when Erasmus was a player – would make winning even sweeter.
Kolisi has fond memories of running out in the Bok jersey for the first time on the Lowveld in 2013, and is delighted to share Etzebeth’s phenomenal achievement with him in Nelspruit this week.
“I’ll never forget my first game – it was a special one against Scotland and it was tough too, so it’s fantastic for me to share this moment with Eben and mark this milestone with him together,” the two-time World Cup-winning skipper told reporters on Friday “I met Eben when I was 18 years old and we’ve been friends for a long time, even when he went overseas.
“So, for us as a team the best way to show how special he is to us will be to win [on Saturday]. He doesn’t want this week to be about him, winning would mean so much more to him.”
Commenting on Etzebeth as a player and teammate, Kolisi adds, “A lot of people see him as playing an enforcing role and being a good leader, but he’s also very intelligent, so there’s so much more to him than his physicality. “He also plays a crucial role in ensuring that the team’s values are kept intact.” On what it would mean to this Bok outfit that has already won back-to-back World Cups, a British & Irish Lions series, and a truncated Rugby Championship in 2019, Kolisi explains, “This group has never won a full Rugby Championship title, so that’s our mission, and we know that if we don’t win the game, it would also put a dampener on Eben’s record. “So, as a team we know what we must do.” Saturday’s clash is last time Bok fans will see their team play on home soil in 2024. “This is the last time we are playing in SA, so hopefully we can make everyone proud,” Kolisi concluded.
“Both the fans at the game and those watching on television, so we encourage them to come out in their green and gold and sing as loud as they can.”
Meanwhile, SA Rugby’s laws advisor Jaco Peyper has addressed concerns around Springbok discipline as the world champs prepare for a Rugby Championship decider on Saturday. The South Africans need only one point from the match against Argentina at Mbombela Stadium, or to suffer a defeat without Los Pumas claiming a bonus point, to clinch their first title since 2019 and their fifth ever in the competition.
However, their conduct has come under the spotlight ahead of the decisive clash in Nelspruit, with seven yellow cards conceded so far — more than any other side in the four-team southern hemisphere competition. Speaking in a Bok conference this week, Peyper acknowledged the pressure Rassie Erasmus’ troops have faced while have been actively addressing areas like breakdowns and tackler behaviour.
However, the former Test referee dismissed the notion that avoiding penalties means a team is not participating in the game. “Sometimes there’s momentum against you and those cards come easier because the players are under pressure and give metres and the infringements look worse,” he told reporters.
“[But] we’re certainly not a team that tries not to give away penalties because if you don’t it means you’re not taking part in the game. You can be as accurate as you want but you’re still going to concede penalties if you engage in the contest.
“But ja, we’ve looked at a few things after the last few games, especially at the breakdown with tacklers rolling away,” Peyper added. “If we can service that better this week, we’ll probably concede a couple less penalties.”
New Zealand referee Ben O’Keeffe will officiate the Mbombela showdown on Saturday. Peyper spoke highly of O’Keeffe, calling him “a very smart man” and adding, “He’s so balanced, such a good individual.
