Springbok captain Siya Kolisi and assistant coach Mzwandile Stick anticipated an epic 80-minute battle against England in their second Castle Lager Outgoing Tour match at the Allianz Stadium in London on Saturday, and said the hosts would be desperate and highly motivated to turn around their season after four defeats in a row.
Kolisi added that this could make England an even more dangerous prospect going into what will be their first meeting since the Rugby World Cup semi-final, which the Springboks won 16-15 in Paris last year.
“They will be dangerous because we know how it feels to lose a few games in a row and what it took to turn things up again,” said Kolisi.
“We lost a few on the trot in Australia before, and such a situation can definitely pull a team together. They are also playing at home and will have their home crowd behind them, so we they’ll be geared up for the challenge.”
Zooming in on their own game, Kolisi said: “We want to rectify our record here as a team (the Boks have lost three of their last four matches at the iconic stadium), and although we won last week (against Scotland), we have high standards, and it’s important for us to return to those standards as a group.”
Stick echoed the Bok skipper’s sentiments: “Losing two matches right at the end of the game doesn’t make them a bad team. In the World Cup semi-final many people didn’t give them a chance against us, and they caught people by surprise with the way they played in that match.
“When we say they are desperate, it certainly isn’t negative, we mean they will have more motivation. They’ve named a quality team, and they have a strong kicking game, so if we are not at our best, they can beat us.
“They’re playing at the Allianz Stadium in front of 85 000 fans, so we cannot afford to be less than our best because we know it’s going to take an 80-minute effort, so we cannot switch off.”
Kolisi was taken aback by the support for the team on the Castle Lager Outgoing Tour thus far and said they owe it to their supporters to put up a good performance as they look to secure their second victory on the three-match tour. They will face Wales in Cardiff in their closing match of the tour on Saturday, 23 November.
“The support for the team has definitely been growing,” said Kolisi. “Wherever we go there are Springbok supporters and some of them have travelled around the world to see us.
“The only way to thank them is by our performances on the field, so we always want to go out there and give our best.
“We also have immense support at home with people watching matches on television and at malls. Our people keep us accountable and give us hope because it gives us something greater to play for than the team.”
With prop Wilco Louw set to become the 50th player to run out in the green and gold jersey this season on Saturday, Kolisi praised Bok head coach Rassie Erasmus for staying true to the plan which he set out in 2018 and said it would set the team in good stead going forward.
“When Rassie took over (the job) in 2018, he said his plan was based around three elements – winning, transforming the team, and building squad depth,” said Kolisi.
“To see Wilco become the 50th player to take the field for the team this year while Rassie has been rotating the squad and we’ve been able to win most of matches is something to be proud of, and ensures that looking forward, if there are injuries we have a wealth of players who can step in at any time.”
The match kicks off at 17h40 (19h40 SA time) and will broadcast live on SuperSport.