By Brenden Nel.
Springbok captain Siya Kolisi is adamant – the Boks won’t defend their Rugby World Cup title if they play the same brand of rugby that won them the Webb Ellis trophy in 2019.
Kolisi said on departure that the team had been altering their game plan slowly over the past few seasons, and were looking to bring a more attacking angle to their play to give them that extra edge they need if they are to defend their title in France next month.
He said the changes had excited players with what they could achieve, even though there had been some teething problems in slowly changing their game plan.
“Off the field not much but on the field there is a lot that has changed. We have had to change a lot. We stuck to our core things – setpiece, scrums, physicality and kicking game – but there is no way we can win playing the same way we did in 2019,” Kolisi said.
“You would have seen this year how the boys played, some of the plays we used – we had to change some of them instead of playing the same way as the last time, which people have studied. We have had to change quite a lot in the way we played. It is quite exciting for us as players and for a lot of players in the team, it gives us more freedom.”
Kolisi added that the team were happy at being defending champions rather than underdogs and there is a quiet confidence in the squad that will fuel their campaign this World Cup.
“Were fine, all you can do is prepare and work hard and have confidence in your squad. Outside pressure and how people see us is what we can’t control in our group. We know what we are going out there to do and we are already going to try and win the cup back to back. That is enough pressure for us and that is what we are focusing on.”
Not worried about the knee
Now that the final 33 players have left the country, he believed the focus would intensify and reckoned everything would be done to achieve the goal of being at their best for their World Cup opening game against Scotland on 10 September.
“I’m excited, we all are as a group. The guys have worked really hard. It’s been hectic and with a big squad it was tough because everybody wants to get an opportunity and prove themselves, but with a smaller squad now we can actually start forming connections and bond. We only have two games and those two games are important for us because in that first game we need to make sure we can be at our best against Scotland. It is the most important game, because it will set us up for good for the rest of the tournament if we can pull that one off.
Kolisi also said he was confident he would be at 100 per cent fitness when he got to the tournament after training fully with the squad for the last week.
“You can only know that when you get onto the field. Our training helps a lot because it is like a rugby game. I’m not thinking about the knee at the moment, we had a session on Thursday and it got heated a bit – in a good way – and I forgot about my knee and got stuck in – which is a good sign. That’s all I care about at the moment, getting as many minutes on the field as I can in training. The coaches are making sure I don’t need to swop in, but rather stay on the field all the time – and that’s tough on the fitness,” he explained.
“Right now, I’m not worried about the knee. If something happens, then it happens. If I go in there with small voices in my head I won’t be able to lead the group. That is why training is so important, and what I do in the week is so important. By the time I’m playing I’m not going to have doubt.”
Kolisi will return to action either this weekend against Wales or next against New Zealand to get game time before the start of the tournament.