Siya Kolisi may be entering the twilight of his career, but he still has plenty to give on and off the field, writes Jon Cardinelli.
The Stormers have been South Africa’s form team across the 2025/26 club season, and if all goes to plan, they will host a European Champions Cup playoff in early April as well as a United Rugby Championship quarter-final in late May.
Rugby director John Dobson believes that the franchise is building towards a more prosperous future, and expects the squad to peak in 2029 – once a large group of homegrown youngsters have come of age.
In the meantime, the Stormers have announced that two high-profile Springboks in Siya Kolisi and Wilco Louw have signed on ahead of the 2026/27 season.
It will be a homecoming of sorts, with Kolisi rejoining the team that gave him his f irst professional contract in 2010 and the Worcester-born Louw returning to his roots.
From a personal point of view, Kolisi’s move from Durban to Cape Town will allow the 34-year-old to be closer to his children, Nicholas and Keziah.
“This move gives me the chance to do that while giving back to the team and fans who made such a big contribution to the player and person I am today,” Kolisi said, after the Stormers announced the signing in December.
“This decision wasn’t easy, but it’s about being closer to my kids.”
That said, the timing of the move is particularly significant for the club as well as the player. The Stormers will tap into Kolisi’s wealth of rugby knowledge as they attempt to become one of the world’s leading teams over the next few seasons.
Apart from his Stormers commitments, Kolisi will need leeway to prepare for the f inal phase of his journey with the Boks.
As Dobson suggests, it is a mutually beneficial arrangement for all the relevant parties concerned.
“We’ve got an outstanding crop of loose forwards in our squad and a number of very strong young leaders, with the last three Junior Springbok captains all on our books,” the Stormers boss said.
“Siya will help to develop these players and mentor them in a way that nobody else could, given what he has achieved and what he represents to all South Africans and especially our fans.”
Paul de Villiers led the Junior Boks at the 2023 World Rugby U20 Championship, and has gone on to become one of the Stormers’ most important young players in recent years.
After a series of impressive performances across the URC and Champions Cup, the openside flanker is looking to take his game to another level.
Watch how Siya Kolisi reacts to messages from fans after reaching 100 tests!
“Siya is a South African rugby icon,” De Villiers told Rapport.
“For me to learn from someone like that is a huge privilege.” With the Bok management team based in Cape Town, Kolisi will be a lot closer to head coach Rassie Erasmus and should have an opportunity to discuss the build-up to the 2027 World Cup on a regular basis.
Kolisi won his 100th Test cap against France in Paris this past November.
Along with other ageing veterans such as Eben Etzebeth, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Damian de Allende and Frans Malherbe, he will continue to push for a place in the national team in 2026 and 2027.
While Erasmus has integrated a number of promising youngsters over the past two seasons and spoken about the delicate balance between youth and experience in a successful Test squad, he knows how valuable Kolisi and others will be at the next global tournament, having won the previous two titles in Japan and France.
Even at the age of 34, Kolisi continues to impress on the international stage, and there is something to be said for the fact that he is featured in most of South Africa’s greatest wins since 2018.
His ability to unite and amplify the playing group is well-documented, and it is worth noting how previous South African captains such as Francois Pienaar, Gary Teichmann and John Smith have described Kolisi as the greatest Bok skipper of all time.
Incidentally, the Boks have won 72% of their Tests under Kolisi, and the f lanker (67) is closing in on Smit’s record of 83 Tests as South African captain.
While the 2027 World Cup – and potentially a record-breaking third successive title – remains his biggest goal, Kolisi will have to prove himself across a demanding 2026 season.
Once his tenure with the Sharks comes to an end, he will turn his attention to the new assignment with the Stormers.
Expectations will sky-rocket in the coming years, and the Stormers players as well as the coaches will have to ensure that they continue on an upward trajectory.
From a Bok point of view, he should not look any further than the Greatest Rivalry Series between South Africa and New Zealand, which kicks off in August.
Much has been made about the inaugural Nations Championship tournament, which will commence with a mouth-watering match between Boks and England in Johannesburg on 4 July and conclude in late November with a decider in the northern hemisphere.
But as Erasmus recently stated, the result of the quadrennial series between the Boks and the All Blacks will matter a great deal more to the respective rugby communities in South Africa and New Zealand.
While the All Blacks have dominated the rivalry for much of the professional era, the Boks have clawed things back in recent times, winning five of the last six match-ups.
Erasmus’ charges will be favourites to extend that winning run over the next four Tests – three of which will be staged in South Africa.
Erasmus has refused to give any guarantees but has intimated that Kolisi and other key senior players will be in the mix across the 2026 and 2027 Test seasons.
At the same time, he has spoken about developing the leadership group, and has given others like Jesse Kriel and Salmaan Moerat opportunities to captain the Boks in recent seasons.
While it would be a stretch to suggest that either player is ready to replace Kolisi on a full-time basis, it is encouraging to see that Erasmus is planning for a scenario where Kolisi is unavailable, or for the inevitable moment.
when the warrior king hangs up his boots for good. Fortunately for the Boks, Kolisi has committed himself for the next two seasons, and should continue to add value as a player and leader.
