'We’ve analysed them': The Siya Kolisi verdict on Borthwick's England

South Africa captain Siya Kolisi insists only the Springboks’ best performance will be enough to dispatch England at Ellis Park.

Steve Borthwick’s tourists are on a four-Test losing run that led to their worst ever Six Nations performance, but Kolisi uses the 2023 World Cup battle between the rivals as evidence they must be taken seriously.

Kolisi said: “We’ve analysed them and I don’t think we can take too much from their Six Nations campaign.

“If you look at their last game against France, they almost won it in the final seconds – and France are one of the best teams in the world.

“They are going to be psyched up for this match and will pitch up physically. They almost took us out of the World Cup in the semi-final and something we learned from that game is if you don’t execute your plan very well against England, they have the potential to punish you.

“They are physically aggressive, even under the high balls. So whatever they’ve done in the past won’t matter. What will make the difference is if we pitch up.

“We know they’re in a good mental space and several players are in form for their clubs, so they’ll bring good energy.

“If we don’t pitch up and execute in the set-pieces and in our kicking game, we’re going to be in trouble.”