We’ll treat Japan with respect they deserve

Captain Siya Kolisi and assistant coach Mzwandile Stick insist the Springboks won’t underestimate Japan at Wembley on Saturday.

The sides meet for the first time since the Boks’ World Cup quarter-final win against the hosts in 2019. The world champions also face France, Italy and Wales on tour this month.

“We have a lot of respect for Japan – they showed what they can do last week when they faced Australia and only lost by four points,” said Stick.

“They’re a well-organised team with good coaches, so we know it’s going to be tough. They have dangerous backline players and a strong pack.

“A lot of people focus on their size, but I look at the heart they show and how physical they are. They don’t stand back for anyone, so the key for us will be to pitch up properly and execute our game plan. We want to get a good start to what will be a long tour.”

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Stick said the focus was on maintaining the Boks’ trademark strengths.

“The key for us is to deliver on our standards. We take pride in our set pieces, kicking game and defence, no matter who we play. We need to set a strong foundation and show intent from the outset.

“A team like Japan can punish you, so even if it rains, we must deliver solid set pieces and play in the right areas. In 2019 they beat Ireland and Scotland, and while we don’t want to dwell on 2015 [when Japan beat the Boks at the World Cup), they’ll draw inspiration from that result.”

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Kolisi echoed those sentiments.

“We’ll treat Japan with the respect they deserve,” he said. “We saw what they did last week against Australia, who beat us earlier this year. We have players who play in Japan and have warned us about some of the players we’ll face, so our preparation has been good.”

The Bok captain added that the team want to start their tour strongly.

“This is not a warm-up game at all. It’ll be a special day for all of us, especially for Zachary [Porthen], who is playing his first Test.”

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Kolisi, who has faced Japan in all three previous meetings, said the Boks must assert their identity.

“We’ve learned that we need to be who we are as South Africans – dominate physically and control the breakdown. They play fast rugby and are very effective, well-structured and disciplined, so it’ll be about which team can impose itself.”

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Stick also praised Japan coach Eddie Jones and his staff, which includes former Bok mentors Gary Gold and Victor Matfield.

“Eddie’s record speaks for itself. He understands how we operate and knows which buttons to press to motivate his players. He’s already said a win at Wembley would be something special for them, and with the experience in that coaching group, we’ll need to be at our best on Saturday.”

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Photo: Paul Harding/Gallo Images