Wizards of Wellington looking to duplicate the magic
RUGBY CHAMPIONSHIP REACTION: Listen as victorious Springbok captain Siyamthanda Kolisi explains to the media how important it is that they repeat the form they showed in Wellington this past weekend.
South Africa ended a decade-long drought in New Zealand, beating the All Blacks 36-34 in a dramatic and emotional-filled Rugby Championship encounter in Wellington.
Kolisi said it was a “great feeling” and that the flight home was much easier.
However, the immediate question was: ‘Can the Boks replicate that performance in the remaining Championship matches and going into the World Cup next year?’
Kolisi said their feet are firmly planted on the ground, but they do have the belief.
“We know there’s still lots of work to do,” the Bok skipper said, adding that the big challenge now is to reproduce that form.
“That is the tough part,” Kolisi said.
“We spoke about it after the game.
“The standard has been set.
“It is the best game we have played defensively, while we also took our opportunities.
“For us, it is a simple thing. We have to keep on working.
“The coach [Rassie Erasmus] said it after the game. Our hard work made the win possible.
“We are just going to keep on working hard to improve.
“All the coach asks for, is to keep on improving a little bit each game.”
He suggested the enormity of the win hasn’t sunk in yet.
“We still have the same burning desire to win. It showed in the way we worked for each other.”
Kolisi said they had confidence they could topple the world champions, despite the defeats to Argentina in Mendoza and Australia in Brisbane the previous two weeks.
“You could see the guys were defending well. Sometimes you get lucky and we did have a bit of luck.
“We are getting better as a team.”
@rugby365com
