It took Springbok captain Siya Kolisi less than four minutes to announce his return to the rugby field against Wales in Cardiff on Saturday.
Playing in his first match following knee surgery in April, the Bok skipper got the ball five metres from the left touchline and eight or so from the tryline.
He straightened the line and freed his arms out of the tackle to offload to Malcolm Marx for the first try of SA’s 52-16 mauling of the Dragons.
Reaction from the Bok camp after Cardiff victory: “We have to get better going into France” - more here: https://t.co/EqvDZee4tt ✅#StrongerTogether #WALvRSA #Springboks pic.twitter.com/35cGXETN0Z
— Springboks (@Springboks) August 19, 2023
“The captain is back”, South Africa echoed.
For the 32-year-old Kolisi that moment was the culmination of months of hard work to get ready for next month’s World Cup in France.
Of that moment and his return, Kolisi says: “It felt amazing. I didn’t have any fear going into the game. Our training sessions prepared me a lot.
“I remember I asked the guys to come at me a little bit softer, but Pieter-Steph came to me and said, ‘trust me, you’re fine’. Those kinds of things you can’t buy – having a guy who has come through things like that.”
Crediting Willie le Roux for the role he played in setting up that try, Kolisi says the fullback told him exactly what he must do and how it will play out in the rehearsed move.
A true team man, Kolisi adds: “As a team we did well; I thought our discipline could be a lot better especially in the first half, but we wanted to stay disciplined in the system and I think we did that well.”
The skipper and his team have one more warm-up match left to play before they head to France.
South Africa tackle old foes New Zealand at Twickenham on Friday and Kolisi adds: “Next week is a different challenge and we’re going to have to get up again.”
Springbok coach Jacques Nienaber will name his squad for the clash on Monday.