Siya Kolisi is already a hero in Springboks colours but he took his legacy to a whole new level in the 2023 Rugby World Cup final against the All Blacks.
Humility in a picture
There is an obvious steeliness and grit evident in Siya Kolisi’s approach to rugby matches. However, the most telling side to his personality is a gentle humility always on show at the end of bruising contests. His first action is to always speak about his opponent in glowing terms, an obvious indicator of his humility, leadership and willingness to take disappointment on the chin. The Springboks were close to disappointment in this year’s barnstorming quarter-final against France and then the excruciatingly tense semi-final against England. Margins are tiny in elite sports. Having a warrior like this guy on your team tilts the scales in your favour and that’s a privilege. It’s a competitive advantage. So it proved again in the final.
Springboks mainstay
It hasn’t all been smooth sailing for Kolisi since his Bok debut in June 2013, the day before his 22nd birthday. He has faced criticism over his form, as all players do, and he’s lost his place in the side at various junctures. One constant, however, has been Kolisi’s parallel obsession with self-improvement and putting the team first. The gifted loose forward has won 89 caps for South Africa but it almost feels as though that number should be larger. It’s difficult to imagine the Springboks before Siyamthanda Kolisi and it will be pretty strange adjusting to life without him when he eventually retires.
Miraculous injury recovery tells you all you need to know
Kolisi was struck down with the dreaded ACL injury in the buildup to the 2023 Rugby World Cup. Conventional wisdom suggests that players who sustain anterior cruciate ligament ruptures can easily spend nine months or usually longer on the sidelines. Siyamthanda Kolisi returned in about a third of that time. He took a massive risk by going under the knife so close to a major tournament, and that risk paid off handsomely. Fortune favours the brave. One of TIME Magazine’s 100 most influential people of 2024 is no shrinking violet.
There will never be a player like him ever again, so enjoy his variety of skills and lessons while they’re still available to you.
Is Kolisi the greatest Springboks skipper in history?
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