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Kolisi opens up on Bok captaincy style

Cape Town - On Saturday, Siya Kolisi will captain the Springboks for the 10th time when they take on England at Twickenham. 

With 5 wins from 9 so far, Kolisi could do with a successful European tour over the next month where fixtures against France, Scotland and Wales await. 

The hype that surround Kolisi's appointment as captain at the start of the year was understandable given that he was the country's first black Bok skipper. 

It was a lot to take in, but now that Kolisi has settled into the role he is much clearer in terms of what is expected from him.

"I can't change who I am. I've had to carry on being myself," he said from Twickenham on Friday.

"I obviously have a responsibility off the field but on the field my responsibility is to perform ... that's what I've been focusing on. The main focus has been making sure I deliver every time I play on Saturday."

Kolisi described himself as a "chilled" captain who doesn't often engage in screaming matches in the dressing room.

"I have a lot of leaders in my team. There is no point me trying to control everything and I believe in shared leadership," he said.

"There are some guys who know things that I don't know, so I let the guys take control where they can so that we can all grow as people. Everybody has a voice in the team. The coach is not only creating players but leaders."

There are three previous Bok captains starting Saturday's clash in Eben Etzebeth, Warren Whiteley and Pieter-Steph du Toit. 

Kick-off is at 17:00 (SA time). 

Teams:

England

15 Elliot Daly, 14 Jack Nowell, 13 Henry Slade, 12 Ben Te’o, 11 Jonny May, 10 Owen Farrell (co-captain), 9 Ben Youngs, 8 Mark Wilson, 7 Tom Curry, 6 Brad Shields, 5 George Kruis, 4 Maro Itoje, 3 Kyle Sinckler, 2 Dylan Hartley (co-captain), 1 Alec Hepburn 

Substitutes: 16 Jamie George, 17 Ben Moon, 18 Harry Williams, 19 Charlie Ewels, 20 Zach Mercer, 21 Danny Care, 22 George Ford, 23 Chris Ashton

South Africa

15 Damian Willemse, 14 S’bu Nkosi, 13 Jesse Kriel, 12 Damian de Allende, 11 Aphiwe Dyantyi, 10 Handre Pollard, 9 Ivan van Zyl, 8 Warren Whiteley, 7 Duane Vermeulen, 6 Siya Kolisi (captain), 5 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Malcolm Marx, 1 Steven Kitshoff

Substitutes: 16 Bongi Mbonambi, 17 Thomas du Toit, 18 Wilco Louw, 19 RG Snyman, 20 Lood de Jager, 21 Embrose Papier, 22 Elton Jantjies, 23 André Esterhuizen 

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Should Siya Kolisi keep the captaincy as the Springboks build towards their World Cup title defence in 2027?
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Yes! Siya will only be 36 at the next World Cup. He can make it!
26% - 1271 votes
No! I think the smart thing to do is start again with a younger skipper ...
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I'd keep Siya captain for now, but look to have someone else for 2027.
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