Siya Kolisi pumps brakes on 'young guys' Boks backline narrative

Siya Kolisi has every ounce of faith in his team’s new-look backline for game two against the All Blacks on Saturday, saying there’s been an overreaction to the sweep of changes coach Rassie Erasmus has made for the contest.

Just two players from last weekend’s Eden Park loss have been retained for the Wellington sequel, with Cheslin Kolbe sticking to his right wing and Canan Moodie sliding into centre from the left wing.

The decision to drop so many experienced players like Damian de Allende, Handre Pollard, Jesse Kriel and Willie le Roux raised eyebrows, but Kolisi wanted to send a reminder that the players coming into the starting team are not lacking international pedigree.

“I think the mixture of the team is really good. Everybody’s looking at our backline, saying ‘these are youngsters’, a lot of the guys have played here before, and some of them have won two World Cups, a guy like Gaza (Damian Willemse). Sacha (Feinberg-Mngomezulu) has played a couple of games,” the Springbok captain told reporters in Wellington on Friday.

“I think they (New Zealand) also have guys who haven’t had any games, have less than double-digit games.

“People are looking at it like there are these youngsters who have just been thrown in. They’ve experienced this kind of level. If you look at the Test caps and how many guys we have, it’s not like a new team. It’s just that it’s new when you look, and you don’t see the regular names that you see each and every single time.

“It’s been a thing for the team where every single person is getting an opportunity, and yes, this game is important; they haven’t just been thrown in there to learn. We’re going into this game to win; they’re coming in because they’ve got a different skillset that the coach wants to see for this specific weekend.

“And for the forwards, it’s a strong pack who have played before together. There’s a lot of experience in there. And the guys in the backline, they’re going to do their thing, but they can only do what they can do if we get our stuff right in the forwards. If we get them good front-foot ball and good lineout ball.

“It’s a great mixture and I’m looking forward to what the guys can do this weekend.”

Kolisi expressed his excitement for rookie winger Ethan Hooker, naming him as a close friend and highlighting his matchup with Will Jordan as one that gives him a chance to show what he’s capable of.

Assistant coach Mzwandile Stick backed up his captain’s sentiment, emphasising that the players are well deserving of their opportunity.

“I think if you look at the players in the backline, like Siya touched on, a lot of people don’t realise these guys have been with us in our system for the last couple of years.

“If you talk about Gaza at 27, he’s already won two World Cups. Sacha has been with us for the past two to three seasons. The guy that I can say is probably slightly newer in our system is Ethan Hooker at wing.

“But once again, he also deserves this opportunity. We’ve tracked him, we’ve seen how he was performing for the Sharks, and one thing that I enjoy about him, besides his speed and physique, is his physical presence in the wider channels. I think that’s something we’re also going to need.

“The All Blacks, they can be tough sometimes in the wider channels. But once again, if I look at our backline, they’ve been with us, they understand how we want to play the game.

“We keep on saying that it’s a young backline. What Siya mentioned is spot on; we’re just so used to seeing certain names in our backline.

“But we can’t be, as a coaching staff, too comfortable to always rely on the same individuals. So for me, I’m excited to see these guys get an opportunity.”