By Adnaan Mohamed
The Calabash will roar. The rain may fall. And somewhere inside the thunder of 90 000 voices, Siya Kolisi will carry a piece of South African history onto the FNB Stadium battlefield.
For the Springbok captain, Saturday’s third Test against the All Blacks is bigger than a series decider.
It is personal.
It is political history without the politics.
And it is an opportunity to repay a debt to the people of Soweto whose sacrifices helped create the freedom that allowed Kolisi and assistant coach Mzwandile Stick to rise to the summit of South African sport.
“We’re thankful for the people connected to that place who fought for the freedom that lets me and him [assistant coach Mzwandile Stick] sit here today,” Kolisi said on Friday.
“Giving our best tomorrow, and using every opportunity we get, is part of us saying thank you.”
Those words will carry considerable weight when the Springboks emerge into the cauldron.
Kolisi spoke about Soweto’s sporting heartbeat, recalling the 1996 African Cup of Nations and the extraordinary connection between the stadium and its community.
He spoke, too, about homeless residents cheering the Springbok bus and locals sacrificing what little they have so others can experience the spectacle.
“It hasn’t always gone our way in Soweto, we didn’t win the first time we played here, but the numbers that show up at the stadium, and the vibe inside it, we feel it,” he said.
“We hope we can give them a good memory, not just with words but with our efforts tomorrow.”
History is also waiting for Kolisi personally.
Victory would give him 55 Test wins as Springbok captain, taking him beyond John Smit and into record territory.
Pieter-Steph du Toit, Jasper Wiese and Kolisi will also establish a new record for Tests played together as a Springbok loose trio.
Kolisi, though, refuses to make the occasion about himself.
“As for the wins record, that’s a team achievement, not mine personally. As long as we win, I’m happy, because it shows we’re building and moving forward as a group.”
That collective mindset will be tested by an All Blacks side with its own pride bruised after losing 33-26 in Cape Town.
New Zealand captain Ardie Savea knows exactly where the battle could be won.
The breakdown.
“Every rugby team is trying to hunt turnovers at the breakdown, and there’s no doubt the Springboks are strong there,” Savea said. “They did a good job keeping us out last week, and they’ll have to do it again this week.”
The All Blacks cannot afford another sluggish launch.
“You wouldn’t be an All Black if you weren’t confident by this point in the week, so we’re confident, but we also respect the threat the Springboks pose.”
“Last week they came out firing … we’d talked about starting well and didn’t quite deliver on that.”
Savea will also have to contend with his friend turned foe.
Kolisi’s thunderous tackle in Cape Town remains fresh in his memory.
“I told him, next time, tackle me frontwards, take me home,” Savea joked. “I was lying on the ground and all I could hear was my dad’s voice telling me to get up. So, I got up.”
Then the smile disappeared.
“Siya’s the same guy off the field, we get on well, but once you’re on the field you’re locked in, he’s the enemy out there. That’s footy, we’re going to try and smash each other tomorrow, then jump on the plane again afterwards.”
Savea likened the decider to State of Origin: “Game three, one apiece, here in Africa, so it’s a big one.”
He knows the All Blacks must be clinical.
“We have to be really clinical, accurate and disciplined. They’re world champions for a reason, and if you do that you won’t get it back.”
Kolisi expects the weather to be irrelevant.
“It won’t affect our game plan at all. The way we play is built for any weather.”
That is the challenge facing New Zealand.
Stop the Springbok juggernaut. Survive the Soweto storm. Silence the Calabash.
For Kolisi, the equation is simpler.
Give everything.
Give thanks.
Make history.
South Africa: Cheslin Kolbe, Kurt-Lee Arendse, Jesse Kriel, Damian de Allende, Ethan Hooker, Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, Cobus Reinach, Jasper Wiese, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Siya Kolisi (captain), Ruan Nortje, Eben Etzebeth, Wilco Louw, Malcolm Marx, Ox Nche.
Replacements: Deon Fourie, Gerhard Steenekamp, Thomas du Toit, Lood de Jager, Andre Esterhuizen, Cameron Hanekom, Morne van den Berg, Manie Libbok.
New Zealand: Damian McKenzie, Will Jordan, Quinn Tupea, Jordie Barrett, Leroy Carter, Ruben Love, Cam Roigard, Ardie Savea (captain), Luke Jacobson, Peter Lakai, Sam Darry, Tupuo Vaa’i, Tyrel Lomax, Asafo Aumua, George Bower.
Replacements: Samisoni Taukei’aho, Xavier Numia, Fletcher Newell, Fabian Holland, Wallace Sititi, Kyle Preston, Anton Lienert-Brown, Josh Moorby.
Saturday, September 5 | FNB Stadium, Soweto | 17:10 SA time
Referee: Nika Amashukeli (Georgia)
Assistant referees: Angus Gardner (Australia), Christophe Ridley (England)
TMO: Eric Gauzins (France)