The match is expected to be an intense battle given the rivalry between the teams, and even more so following the Boks’ 13-8 defeat against Ireland in their last outing during the pool stages of the Rugby World Cup in France.
“Looking back, there were a lot of learnings we could take from the last match we played against them,” said Kolbe, who scored the Boks' only try in the Paris pool clash.
“It brought us back down to earth during the World Cup. But that’s history. Our focus is now on this weekend’s game. There are a few other players getting an opportunity, and as a team we want to bring the physicality, back ourselves, and enjoy the occassion.”
With the match playing out at Loftus Versfeld, altitude will come into play, but Kolbe didn’t expect it to have a big influence on the outcome of the Test.
“When I got back from Japan it took time to get used to the altitude, but we’ve been here for a few weeks now and Ireland have also been here for a few days, so we cannot count on that,” said the double Rugby World Cup winner.
“We need to go out there and implement what we’ve been working on this week and be accurate in our execution.”
The Boks may enter the encounter as the Rugby World Cup champions, but Kolbe said they will have to work very hard for victory: “It’s certainly not a case of us taking the field and banking on a victory. We need to play good rugby and be effective in what we do.”
Kolbe spoke highly of the Boks’ new attack coach Tony Brown and said he enjoyed the new dimension he has been trying to bring to their game.
“The way he thinks about the game and sees things is very exciting,” said Kolbe. “So, we are looking forward to implementing what we’ve been working on. Ireland are a quality team so we capitalise on the chances we create.”
