Siya Kolisi says a “heated” Springbok training session this past week gave his knee the battle test it required, and he has left for Wales reassured that he is good to go for the World Cup.
The Springbok captain spoke on Saturday shortly before the Boks were greeted by thousands of fans and departed OR Tambo International Airport on their mission to defend the Webb Ellis Cup.
They play Wales next Saturday and New Zealand on August 25 in warm-up matches that Kolisi describes as “vital” ahead of their World Cup opener against Scotland in Marseille on September 10.
Kolisi said the plan is to give him as many minutes as possible in training and the two matches.
“The way we train is close to how we play, and in our final session on South African soil the boys got a bit excited,” Kolisi smiled.
“Things got heated, and I got stuck in. I completely forgot about my knee. And afterwards, there was no issue with it whatsoever.
“That is exactly the head-space I want to be in – there must be no voices in my head worrying about my knee,” Kolisi explained.
“I will not take the field at the World Cup if I have any doubts about my knee. If I did that, I would let the boys down because I would not be 100% focused on playing.
“That is why it was so good for me to lose myself in a heated exchange on the training field. That tells me I am good to go. The coaches have kept me going on the training field without respite. It is about getting as many minutes under the belt as possible.”
Kolisi added that supporters shouldn’t be surprised if he takes a back seat from the leadership of the team over the next fortnight.
“We have a host of good leaders in the team, as you have seen over the last few games. I can tell the leaders in the group to take charge in this time, so I can focus on myself,” Kolisi explained.
“I am at my best when I can concentrate on playing well. Then in a game or two down the line, I can say to those guys ‘Thanks, I am ready to take over again’. Everything is what is best for the team, and if that means somebody else stepping up with the leadership, that is how it must be.”
Kolisi said that next weekend’s match in Cardiff and the following week’s showdown with the All Blacks at Twickenham must generate pre-world Cup momentum.
“We have to get things right in these two games,” he said.
“We are going to put everything into them so we go into the Scotland game confident. If we can put in a good performance and win that game well, it will set us up for the rest of the tournament. That game can set the tone for us.”
Importantly, Kolisi pointed out that if the Boks are going to be successful in France, they have to change the way they do things on the attack.
“If you compare our current buildup to France to the same period before Japan four years ago, off the field we have changed little, but on the field a lot has changed,” he stressed.
“We cannot win in 2023 if we try to repeat what we did in 2019. We have to vary our game. People have studied us – we have to change a lot of things, and that is exciting. It gives us more freedom.”
IOL Sport