Rassie: ‘Fit’ Siya to captain Boks
While Siya Kolisi will captain the Springboks for the July internationals, his future role has not yet been confirmed.
Rassie Erasmus has confirmed that Siya Kolisi will retain the Springbok captaincy for the July internationals, while defending the flanker against criticism for being out of shape.
Kolisi, who joined the Springboks at Twickenham for the opening Test of the year against Wales, was among the world cup winners recalled to a 39-man squad for the two-Test series against Ireland.
The Springboks did not confirm in the squad announcement today whether Kolisi would retain the captaincy.
Questions had been raised over Kolisi’s future in the role, after he moved to Paris-based club Racing 92 after the world cup. Erasmus admitted back in March that he prefers to have a locally-based captain, but left the door open for Kolisi to remain in the role.
In his first season in France, the loose forward made 18 appearances in all competitions, but was criticised after Racing 92 were knocked out of the Top 14 semi-finals.
Racing 92 owner Jacky Lorenzetti hit out Kolisi for a lack of form and conditioning at the tail end of the season, saying he had ‘gained weight’ and ‘was invisible’.
During a Springbok press conference this afternoon, Erasmus confirmed that Kolisi will be leading the team against Ireland, while hitting back at the criticism.
“Yeah, no, Siya will be captain and Siya will play No 6 flank,” Erasmus said.
“Siya’s fit and got no injury and Siya’s not fat and Siya’s not transparent,” the Bok coach added, with a smile.
This article was first published in SA Rugby magazine.
