Skipper Siya Kolisi warned the “hard work starts now” after the Springboks completed their World Cup preparations with a record win against the All Blacks on Friday.
The Boks ran in five tries, Kolisi leading the way before wing Kurt-Lee Arendse, hooker Malcolm Marx and replacements Bongi Mbonambi and Kwagga Smith all went over, in a 35-7 victory over 14-man New Zealand at Twickenham on Friday, the All Blacks’ heaviest defeat of all time.
Flyhalf Manie Libbok converted the lot as the Boks easily topped their previous largest winning margin over their arch-rivals and fellow three-time men’s World Cup winners, achieved in a 17-0 win back in 1928.
It was also an ideal way for South Africa to serve notice of their intentions ahead of a title defence they start against Scotland in Marseille on 8 September.
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Kolisi, who returned to action following a partial tear of his anterior cruciate ligament in April during last weekend’s 52-16 rout of Wales in Cardiff, was delighted by the support his side received from a capacity crowd of nearly 82,000 at English rugby’s headquarters.
“To see so many beautiful South Africans here, I can’t tell you how proud I am,” said the 2019 World Cup-winning skipper.
“It was amazing to see the number of South Africans lining the streets on the way to the stadium. The coaches told us before the match that whenever we need them they are here for us, and they came out strongly today.
“That’s why we couldn’t hold back in this match, we had to give it all, and we did that as a team.”
“We knew we had to start up front with the forwards. Our backs are special. We had to concentrate hard.”
The 32-year-old flanker added: “Proud of the boys, but we know the hard work starts now. We have to go and defend the World Cup in France.”
Photo: Adrian Dennis/AFP