Siya Kolisi reflects on massive honour ahead of 50th match as Springbok captain

Kolisi explained his rugby journey and gave credit to those who made this achievement possible at a media conference at the team hotel outside Toulon and Friday.

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"I never dreamed of this," he said. "I started playing rugby because I enjoyed it, it kept me out of trouble and my friends played the sport. But I certainly didn't think I'd be sitting here now."

"It was not an easy road because I was always the joker and the naughty guy in a team. At the Boks it was difficult at first, but there is no greater honour (than being the Bok captain).

"Being the first black captain made it tough too, but I would never have made it to this point if it was not for my team-mates, as well as coach Rassie (Erasmus, Director of Rugby) and coach Jacques (Nienaber). They put structures in place around me to assist me, and thanks to them it made my job easier."

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Looking forward to the match against Tonga, Nienaber said it was vital to improve a few areas of their game to book a quarter-final spot and attempt to defend their title.

"We obviously have goals if you take the results out of the way," said Nienaber.

"Firstly, we need a win, then a bonus point and a good points difference, and then there are things that we need to rectify which we didn't get right against Ireland. We need to get our foundations right to get to the quarter-final and onward otherwise we won't make it through."

Sunday's match at Stade de Marseille kicks off at 21h00.

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