Springbok captain Siya Kolisi declared in the early hours of Monday morning that they knew it would take something special to beat France in the Rugby World Cup quarter-final on Sunday.
The Springboks, who beat France by 29-28 in a thrilling contest in Paris, will face England in the last four on Saturday, while Argentina and New Zealand will meet in the first semi-final on Friday.
“We worked together as a team and we talked a lot about never giving up. We knew it would take something special and we did it today,” said Kolisi.
“France asked a lot of questions of us, but the character we showed stood out. We had a clear plan on what we needed to do, especially at the breakdown, and we had to fight for one another, especially in the last eight minutes of the yellow card. I’m proud of the guys and the discipline they showed.”
"I think a lot of questions were asked of us as group by the French team. The character of the boys stood out. We had a clear plan what to do, especially in the breakdowns. We knew how hard they were going to be."
"They were tough to stop with 15 men, imagine how hard it was with 14. We had to fight for each other for that period and I am really proud of the character and discipline we showed.”
"We scrambled a lot, especially when we were short of numbers. We talk about chasing lost causes as a group, we don’t give up until they put the ball down over the try-line. We worked together as a team."
"If we hadn’t done that, we would be going home tomorrow. We never give up. You can lose as a team, but as long as you don’t give up. We knew it would take something special and it did.”