REACTION: Springbok and Sharks loose forward Siya Kolisi provided a frank assessment of how far behind the South African franchises and other sides are in comparison to the Top 14 outfits like Bordeaux-Begles and Toulouse.
The 33-year-old spoke post the Sharks 12-66 loss to Bordeaux and said that South African sides need to be better in the Champions Cup and adapt to the different conditions sooner than later in order to be competitive against the best in the business.
He also hinted that South African sides might need bigger and stronger squads in order to have a seat at the table with the top sides in the competition.
“We need to play well and better, there’s no excuses.
“It’s a great competition which we’re only playing in for a couple of years now.
“We’ll definitely get better, but what I admire about the French teams is that they’ve got a great amount of squad depth.
“Like Toulouse played a big Top 14 clash against La Rochelle and backed a young side and only lost by two points.
“They backed their first-team to go to South Africa in different conditions.
“We can’t make excuses and say ‘its cold here’ or ‘this is happening’.
“You find ways to adapt, and I feel the more we play, the more we’ll understand how to fit in both conditions.
“But the biggest thing is making sure that we create enough squad depth and that is one of the things we can learn from the French teams.
“They make sure that they base off players that they all play the big games and they’re able to play against anyone on any day.”
When asked if he felt after facing both Toulouse and Bordeaux if the French outfits are a class above the most of the Champions Cup outfits, Kolisi had nothing but praise for the two sides.
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“Well that’s what they’re doing now, that’s what they’re showing.
“You can’t deny it, they’re No.1 and No.2 on the Top 14 table respectively.
“Toulouse are top of the French League [Top 14] and they’re also top of the Champions Cup which are against teams all around Europe and South Africa.
“You can’t doubt them, the numbers don’t lie.”
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The Sharks will resume their United Rugby Championship campaign this weekend against Cardiff at the Arms Park.
Image credit @EPCR
