Kolisi: 'Rassie instilled belief when no one wanted to watch us'
REACTION: The Springboks know how to win, they know how to fight, and they know how to dig deep.
That is how captain Siya Kolisi summed up the Springboks’ victory over Argentina to bag back-to-back Rugby Championship titles in London on Saturday.
The Springboks retained their crown in a thriller at Twickenham One in which they were trailing at halftime and eventually won the game narrowly 29-27..
South Africa had to fight to secure victory as Argentina brought a ferociously physical first-half performance.
The All Blacks’ 28-14 bonus-point win over Australia in Perth earlier meant that South Africa needed a bonus-point victory to win the title with clear water, though their overwhelming points advantage meant that any win would be enough.
A week ago, South Africa led the Pumas 25-23 at halftime but poured on the power to win 67-30, and for a while it looked as if a repeat might be on the cards.
Kolisi was asked what the halftime message was from the coaches when his side was trailing 10-13.
“We needed to play together, and we had to make fewer mistakes. And obviously, the discipline was important,” the captain said.
“You have to give credit to Argentina; you make mistakes because they are putting pressure on us.
“In the second half, we were able to jump into it and change our mindset. In all these games, that’s what makes me proud as a player.
“When the coaches send messages, we just relax; there’s no back and forth. We just say, let’s do it,” Kolisi explained, adding: “I’ve worn this jersey when no one wanted to watch us play. When it was hard to get a win.
“Now, in this moment, no matter how tough it is in the game, we know how to win, we know how to fight, and we know how to dig deep.
“When coach Rassie came in, he changed how we thought. He told us to put ourselves aside; it was about the Springboks.”
Erasmus added that it was evident at halftime that some of the youngsters struggled with the pressure of the big moment.
Argentina held a three-point lead at halftime, but conceded 19 points without reply to lose their grip on the match.
“At halftime, you could see the guys were tired. Argentina came out really well, and we missed a few tackles and then the yellow card as well.
“I’m not criticizing the referee, but I think Canan [Moodie] was lucky with that tap; it was almost two yellow cards there.
“I think if I were Felipe Contepomi, I would’ve wondered if it wasn’t a red card.
“I’m just saying there were close calls that could’ve changed the game even more,” the coach commented.
“We always knew Argentina had massive fight in them. They take you to the gutters, and we had to swim in the gutters with them.
“I know they scored a try in the end.
“We are proud that we beat New Zealand there, and they were our rivals now at the end. It was far from perfect. The one positive is that one learns while winning, rather than learning while losing.
“I think some of our players haven’t played under such pressure after New Zealand beat Australia (earlier in the day), and sometimes it was evident.
“After the replacements went on, things calmed down a bit.”
