Kolisi: 'Ireland are a completely different team with Sexton' 

As a fellow late bloomer, the Springboks captain has watched in awe as Ireland's No.10 seamlessly returned to the fray in France 

READY TO RUMBLE: The two captains, Jonathan Sexton of Ireland and Siya Kolisi of South Africa, make their way out for last year's Aviva Stadium clash. Pic: Brendan Moran/Sportsfile

Siya Kolisi has become such a talismanic figure for, and in, South Africa that it is far too easy to forget how long it took to make himself part of the furniture, let alone the centrepiece of a side that would become the world champions.

Just 22 when he made his Test debut against Scotland in Nelspruit in 2013, he had to wade through another three years and 12 caps off the bench before earning a first start for his country. For a long time there he was a peripheral figure.