The South African winger reflects on RCT’s Challenge Cup win over Glasgow. And evokes the difficult times he went through.
Special Envoy to Dublin
What does this Challenge Cup victory against Glasgow mean to you?
Cheslin Kolbe: As I said before the match, all finals are special for me. The club had played a few finals in recent years, but this one we won. The atmosphere was special in the locker room. The whole week has been special, in terms of management. Everyone has made sacrifices within the club so that we can get there on Tuesday. I’m very proud of the team, the way the guys honored our jersey.
You cried at the end of the game…
Yes, there were a lot of emotions. It was mainly because of the many injuries I had recently. Things didn’t go the way I wanted. I would have liked to be able to play every weekend with my club. But it didn’t happen like that… There was also a lot of excitement around this match. As I often say, God has a plan for each of us. I kept faith in myself and worked hard.
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There were a lot of injuries during this game. How do we stay focused?
It’s always complicated… But we did everything to stay “focused” on the pitch. We all hope that the players who were injured this (Friday) evening can quickly come back with us.
Has Toulon already saved its season by winning the Challenge Cup?
Of course it’s always good to win trophies, especially if you look at how the game went with all those injuries during the game. But that’s good, we have to build on that.
“I have the hope that I will still be in Toulon next year. We’ll see what’s going to happen.”
And you finished the match with Matthieu Bastareaud in number 12…
(Laughs) We were told at half-time, he did an excellent job in this position. I’m happy for him, he has enormous experience. He knows how to handle a final. He gave us a lot of confidence when he entered, things were easier.
What can this final bring to Toulon for the future?
The coaches, Franck and Pierre, told us that everything depends on us. We must continue to train well, that we remain focused on our objectives. For me, personally, it’s been quite difficult because I’ve had a lot of injuries since I arrived at the club. Honestly, I’m happy to have been able to come back on the pitch to try to help and to have brought the maximum to my club.
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Will you be from Toulon next season?
I have hope that I will always be here. We will see what will happen. I am focused on my club and on next season. We’ll see after…
Are you already thinking about the World Cup in France?
Not for the moment, here I am thinking above all of the match against Bordeaux-Bègles next week… We can still qualify in the top six, something magical could happen. So for now, I’m focused on my club. There will be time after to think about the World Cup.
