Rassie Erasmus has plenty of great Springboks in his South Africa squad but there is just one individual he describes as “once-in-a-lifetime”. It’s not Siya Kolisi, his double World Cup winning captain. Nor Eben Etzebeth, the most capped Test player in his country’s history, either.
No, Erasmus reserves the highest of praise for a man a foot shorter and 50kg lighter than some of his teammates. In just 38 caps for his country, Cheslin Kolbe has become one of the Springboks’ most crucial cogs, a comic book creation with flashing feet, rhinoceros beetle strength and a tool belt befitting of South Africa’s ultimate utility figure.
Want emergency scrum half cover to enable you to pick seven forwards on the bench for a World Cup final? Kolbe is happy to oblige. Fly half struggling with the boot and an alternative required? The wing will step up with few issues. Fancy trying something funky with a back throwing into a lineout? The 31-year-old can do that, too.
“I’m blessed with the skillset I have, but I work quite hard on it,” Kolbe tells The Independent of when asked how he came to be quite such a conjuror. From his time playing touch bare foot on the streets of the Western Cape through his stint on the sevens circuit, which included an Olympic bronze medal, he has never been afraid to try things.
“I am a guy who visualises throughout the week how the game might go, where I might find myself, how I will try and get out of it. But sometimes you do things that you never thought you were capable of doing.
“With coach Rassie, you never know what he might come up with. He’s always five, ten steps ahead of everyone else. He sees this game differently and he’s not scared to try new things.
“I’m not as big as other players. That’s been a challenge for me, even since school rugby. My size has always been against me. You need coaches to believe in you and your skillset. That’s what excites me when I get to play – to prove people wrong and showcase the talent I’ve been blessed with.”
Away from the pitch, Kolbe is reserved and respectful, more than happy to let his rugby do the talking. His was an at-times difficult upbringing, raised in an area rife with drugs, gangs and violence. Three months before the 2019 World Cup, one of his childhood best friends was murdered having spent time in and out of prison.
It shows the divergent paths life can take. Like many Springboks, Kolbe speaks of having found his family in South Africa camp – on the day on which we speak at a training camp in Jersey, Kolbe is ambushed at a beach bar with a special birthday dessert, the burly backs of his teammates bouncing up and down as they boom laughter at his expense.
“For me, family is everything, and this group is everything,” he admits. “It is open and honest. You can go to each and every player and share if you are going through a tough time. The players will be there for you to overcome that hurdle. It’s something special and it’s something professional athletes need. In the past, quite a lot of players have struggled with the mental side of things, couldn’t overcome certain obstacles.
“Wherever you are in the world, you look forward to coming back into the Springboks environment. We aren’t just players; we are brothers who come together on and off the field. I want to be here for as long as I can and create a lot of memories.
“A lot of people think I have more than 50 caps, but I don’t. It’s every young kid’s dream to get to 50, 100 caps, and be there as long as possible. So far, I’m blessed, healthy, and I’ve got a lot of years left in me.”
At 31, Kolbe is part of a crop of Springboks hoping to survive this next World Cup cycle as they seek an unprecedented third consecutive crown. This year, the wing feels the team has taken a step forward as they expanded their offensive arsenal; in new attack coach Tony Brown, he has found a kindred spirit: “I’ve never seen a guy that sees space like him”.
Naturally given his place as a key figure in the world’s best men’s Test team, talk of individual honours will come. Kolbe was nominated for World Rugby Player of the Year in 2019, missing out to teammate Pieter-Steph du Toit, but produce a standout November and the wing might just go one better.
Does that sort of recognition matter to him? Not really, Kolbe stresses. “To win World Player of the Year would be special, but that’s not anywhere close to my mind. To be honest, it doesn’t bother me. I’m not doing this to be an individual, I’m doing whatever it takes for the team to be better. Once the team is successful, individuals stand out. I just want to do that jersey proud and enjoy myself.”