Warren Whiteley: Ellis Park crowd shows Springboks faith is back

The speed with which the Springboks have turned around their fortunes is perhaps best reflected in Ellis Park expecting a crowd of more than 50 000 for the third and final Test against France on Saturday.

But captain Warren Whiteley said on Friday that the team were still hungry for further improvement.

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“We’re very grateful, it’s an unbelievable feeling to know that the stadium will be close to a full house, that’s going to give us amazing support and there will be an incredible atmosphere. So we want to put on a good performance for our supporters,” said Whiteley.

“The foundation has been laid in the last month, but the guys are hungry for more and we want to better ourselves even more, that’s what we’re after. Those small little battles every day, if we look after those then the rest will take care of itself.”

While the skipper has had a quiet series in terms of his own play, there is no doubt his leadership has galvanised the Springboks and the eighthman said he was looking forward to teaming up with his loose forward partners Jean-Luc du Preez and Siya Kolisi on Saturday.

Du Preez is making his first start for the Springboks and Whiteley said there are no limits to how far the 21-year-old can go in his international career.

“J-L is a young player who I believe could become the best in the world. I don’t think he even knows how good he is, but he’s a wonderful athlete. I also have a great relationship with Siya, he’s such a character and a great leader in his own right. He had a fantastic game last weekend but he’s had a fantastic year.

“So I know they’ve got my back and when you throw in Oupa Mohoje and Jaco Kriel as well, then there’s intense competition in the loose trio,” Whiteley said.

While the series is already in the bag after the wins in Pretoria and Durban, Whiteley suggested that the Springboks were treating each Test as an individual entity, trying to ensure they keep moving in the right direction so they can be a force in the Rugby Championship starting in August.

“We’re definitely evolving and we’re hungry to keep improving. It’s very important to keep this momentum because we’re working towards the Rugby Championship, and this is just an individual game we need to perform in, whether we win the series 3-0 or 2-1 hasn’t been mentioned.

“It’s not about making statements, we’re just focusing on ourselves as a team and whatever messages are sent is not in our hands.”

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