Springboks legend Schalk Burger has weighed in on Siya Kolisi’s positional switch for the Sharks this season.
Kolisi returned to Durban after just a single season at French club Racing 92 and has enjoyed a strong run of form at the international level as well as with the Sharks.
The Springboks loose forward started out his career as a number eight when Rassie Erasmus “spotted” him but has since become almost an out-and-out flanker for club and country.
Schalk Burger’s verdict on Siya Kolisi’s positional switch
However, that has changed this season with Sharks head coach John Plumtree naming Kolisi at number eight in three of his four starts across the United Rugby Championship and Investec Champions Cup including the recent victory over the Exeter Chiefs where he scored a brace.
Burger, who also moved around the back-row during his career and had stints at number eight during the latter stages, has now weighed on Kolisi’s move to the back of the scrum.
The positional switch is beneficial for Kolisi according to the former Boks as he will be able to not “work as hard” as he would need to as an openside flanker.
“So nicely like I think number eight is one of those positions as you get older you know you don’t work as hard, you can pick your battles in and out,” Burger said on the Box Office podcast when asked about how Kolisi is faring in the new role.
“You save the engine because you’re not revving it into the red all the time whereas an openside flank you have to.”
Kolisi’s take
Burger lavished more praise on the Bok skipper as he continues to improve his game as he gets older. At the age of 33, Kolisi is certainly in the latter stages of his career and his shift to number eight could potentially extend his career with the positional switch but Burger believes that he is still improving.
“Siya is one of those players, there’s not a lot of them, that the older you get the the better the skillsets becomes and he looks beautiful in open-play which is nice to see,” he said.
As for the man himself, Kolisi said that he is enjoying his time at the back of the scrum.
“I’m loving it – that’s where I started playing rugby, at 8th man,” he said after the win over Exeter.
“That’s where coach Rassie (Erasmus) spotted me when I was at school so it’s really good to get back to it. I’m getting the ball in my hands more… I’m more involved in the game and I’m enjoying it.”
While Burger was full of praise for Kolisi, he did lament the Sharks’ inconsistencies in matches so far this season.
“The Sharks have been playing this way the whole year like they’ve got these explosive moments where they score a 90m try and then they just go into a bit of a lull,” he said.
“It’s then negative on negative, discipline is a big issue for them and they do it in the URC as well where they concede 20 points in the last 20 minutes after thinking that they’re going to put 40 or 50 points past a team.”
