By Nokwanda Ncwane
The Springboks continued their winning streak with a commanding 45-21 victory over rivals England in the Nations Championship at Ellis Park Stadium in Johannesburg on Saturday.
The match, attended by more than 52 000 fans, was not without its challenges. The Springboks were forced into late changes before kick-off after captain Siya Kolisi and lock Eben Etzebeth withdrew due to injuries. Despite the setbacks, the world’s top-ranked team delivered a dominant performance, scoring seven tries and five conversions to seal an emphatic win.
The match went into half time with South Africa leading and England’s hopes suffered a further blow in the second half when Tommy Freeman was shown a yellow card for a high tackle on Damian Willemse. The visitors were reduced to 13 players a minute later after Guy Pepper was also yellow-carded for a tackle without the ball.
Damian Willemse and Cheslin Kolbe led the Springboks onto the field as they celebrated their 50th Test appearances. Both players marked the milestone with outstanding performances, playing key roles in the victory.
Speaking after the match, Kolbe described reaching his 50th Test cap as a dream come true.
“From the first time I donned the green and gold jersey until earning my 50th cap, it’s been a childhood dream and an absolute privilege to represent the country.
“Personally, I just want to keep performing, keep that fire burning within me, continue improving my game and contribute to the team. We have a great group of players and management, and I’m thankful to everyone I’ve worked with and everyone who has supported me throughout my career. Hopefully, there will be many more caps to come,” he said.
Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus acknowledged that the late withdrawals of Kolisi and Etzebeth posed a challenge but said they also provided an opportunity to test the squad’s depth.
“Sometimes it takes a lot of courage to slot players in and out. It’s tough not to play Siya when Paul is coming through and Marco (van Staden) is coming through, and you ask yourself where you’re going to play them if Siya is always fit. But we have a saying: ‘It will come to us’ [blooding players]. We believe in that – that it will come to us – but certainly we have to make big calls this year to be 100% sure when we go into the World Cup next year that we’ve tested our depth. Today destiny took charge of that and it worked out the right way.
“It’s not a nice thing to lose two players who sit on either side of me as the captain and the most-capped player in the team photo, but you have to make the best of it,” Erasmus explained.
