VIDEO: 'It does not get bigger than this'
South African captain Siya Kolisi described as ‘the biggest game of his career’ the face-off against New Zealand in the World Cup Final in Paris on Saturday.
The two sides clash at the Stade de France to renew a rivalry unparalleled in Rugby Union.
“It’s huge,” said the iconic Springbok skipper.
“We actually spoke about it yesterday [Wednesday],” he told a media briefing in the Salle Jeanne d’Arc (Joan of Arc) meeting room in the quaint commune of Presles in the Val-d’Oise district in northern France.
“It’s huge,” added the man who captained South Africa when they beat England to win the Webb Ellis Cup four years ago in Japan.
Kolisi said he had watched the 2007 Final in France, when South Africa again beat England, and had been inspired as John Smit lifted the trophy.
He said he had watched that game with people who didn’t even normally follow rugby.
“It is always big playing against the All Blacks, but playing them in a World Cup Final – when it is No.1 and No.2 [ranked in the world] – is not something you can dream about.
“I don’t think it will happen in our lifetime again to have two teams like this.”
He said the Boks prepared as hard as they could for the enormous challenge of facing their arch-rivals.
“We know what to expect,” the iconic skipper said.
“I don’t think for a player, to play in a game like this, it will ever get any bigger.
“We are excited, we are looking forward to it.
“We know how good they are.
“A couple of months ago they went through a tough time.
“They turned it all around quietly, behind the scenes and now they are here [in the Final].
“We had to find our way too.
“The way that the coaches went the last year or so, we played over maybe 50 players to try and find the best.
“I’m looking forward to Saturday.
“It doesn’t get bigger than this
“It’s the biggest game of my life.”
(WATCH as Springbok captain Siya Kolisi speaks about facing the All Blacks in the World Cup Final at Stade de France in Paris on Saturday…)
The last time the Boks faced off against New Zealand in a World Cup final was in 1995, when Nelson Mandela rallied behind the home team.
That victory became a unifying, jubilant moment in a country still torn by deep societal divides and struggling with high poverty and unemployment.
“I didn’t get to watch the game, I was four then,” said Kolisi.
“The significance of the game is huge. It opened a lot of doors for me and many others.
“It was a huge game for South Africa in general and that’s why it’s highly spoken about even to this day.”
For coach Jacques Nienaber, that 1995 success was also well remembered.
“After the victory, we were all in the streets. I was at university then,” he said.
“I watched the game about a year ago. It’s amazing how the game has changed.
“There were over 80 kicks in that game. And they played with a leather ball. There wasn’t any lifting in the line-outs so there were a lot of differences back then.
“The ball in play was under 24 minutes. There was literally no rugby, it was set-piece after set-piece. The game is a far better product now than it was back then, but not taking anything away from the game.”
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* Additional reporting by AFP
