Siya Kolisi

Siyamthanda 'Siya' Kolisi (born 16 June 1991) is a South African rugby union footballer who plays for Western Province in the Currie Cup and the Stormers in Super Rugby. He has the ability to play in any position in the back-row but has thus far mostly featured as a flank.

Kolisi grew up in the impoverished Zwide township outside Port Elizabeth and endured a tough upbringing. At the age of 12 he impressed scouts at a youth tournament in Mossel Bay and was offered a scholarship at Grey Junior in Port Elizabeth. He subsequently moved up to Grey High School, where he was a member of the first XV rugby team. He was also a part of the Eastern Province Kings youth set-up between 2007 and 2009, playing in the Under-16 Grant Khomo week and the Under-18 Craven Week before shifting west to join Western Province.

Kolisi made his senior debut for Western Province against the Golden Lions during the 2011 Vodacom Cup and later in the year several injuries and international call-ups gave him the opportunity to make regular starts in the Currie Cup. He made 13 appearances and scored 4 tries during the campaign including a crucial score against bitter rivals the Blue Bulls.

2012 saw him graduate to the Stormers squad and he made an immediate impact with 16 appearances during the season and 1 try. The second half of the year was not so kind to him as a thumb injury restricted him to just one appearance in the 2012 Currie Cup and he had to watch on from the sidelines as Province lifted their 33rd Currie Cup title.

He was back with a bang the following year and held his place in the Stormers side despite fierce competition among the loose forwards. 13 appearances and 2 tries were recorded and this earned him his first international recognition. Being part of the Springbok set-up for the 2013 Rugby Championship meant he only played in Western Province's final 3 matches of the 2013 Currie Cup and he was powerless to prevent them from slipping to a surprise 33–19 home defeat to the Sharks in the final of the competition.

Kolisi was a member of the South Africa under 20 side that competed in both the 2010 and 2011 IRB Junior World Championships.

He made his Springbok debut on 15 June 2013 against Scotland at the Mbombela Stadium in Nelspruit. He replaced the injured Arno Botha in the 5th minute and was named as Man of the Match as his side won 30–17. 9 further substitute appearances followed during the 2013 international season as he firmly established himself as a regular member of the national squad.

Test match record

Against	Pld	W	D	L	Tri	Con	Pen	DG	Pts	%Won
Argentina	2	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	100
Australia	2	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	100
France	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	100
New Zealand	2	0	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	0
Samoa	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	100
Scotland	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	100
Wales	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	100
Total	10	8	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	80

Pld = Games Played, W = Games Won, D = Games Drawn, L = Games Lost, Tri = Tries Scored, Con = Conversions, Pen = Penalties, DG = Drop Goals, Pts = Points Scored

As of 21 June 2015