Springboks Speedster Cheslin Kolbe Adds to the Discourse Ahead of Ireland Series

As the highly-anticipated two-Test series between South Africa and Ireland approaches, Springboks star Cheslin Kolbe has weighed in on the growing discourse surrounding the matchup.

Ahead of the clash between the international heavyweights, several Springboks players have already made headlines with their comments. Eben Etzebeth accused the Irish players of being “arrogant” after their World Cup pool stage victory over South Africa, while Damian de Allende stated that Ireland should expect “war” after the way the Irish media “disrespected” the South Africans following their 2017 defeat in Dublin.

“Ex-Ireland back Simon Zebo also stoked the fire, claiming that Springboks boss Rassie Erasmus ‘hates the Irish’ and ‘really, really doesn’t like us.'”

Now, Kolbe, who is in a race against time to be fit for the series due to a knee niggle, has added his perspective to the discourse.

“There’s been a lot of hype and a lot of talk about it,” Kolbe said in an interview with News24. “Obviously, we badly wanted to beat them in the pool match at the World Cup, but they had the better of us on the day. So, a lot of excitement about Ireland in July, but we’re not going to get ahead of ourselves, we’ve got Wales at Twickenham and then the focus will shift onto Ireland.”

Kolbe’s comments come as Ireland head into the 2023 tournament as the top-ranked side in the world, with many expecting them to break their quarter-final hoodoo and reach the final, potentially against France.

The Springboks speedster is eager to work with the team’s new coaching additions, including former Munster and Ireland hooker Jerry Flannery, who served as a consultant during the World Cup preparations, and ex-All Blacks fly-half Tony Brown, the new attack guru.

“It’s definitely going to be exciting working with two new coaches,” Kolbe said. “With [Flannery’s] experience and [Brown’s] work in Japan, it’ll be exciting to see how the Springbok attack will grow – hopefully we’ll get a lot more opportunities to run with the ball.”

As the anticipation builds for the upcoming series, the war of words between the two rugby powerhouses shows no signs of slowing down, setting the stage for what promises to be a thrilling encounter on the pitch.

🔗 Source