Bok speedster Cheslin Kolbe wary of experienced Wales outfit

Kolbe and Biggar went head-to-head during Wales' tour of South Africa last year and were engaged in a memorable running battle.

It was a series in which Springbok captain Siya Kolisi admitted the visitors "got under their skin", even though the Boks were ultimately able to prevail 2-1 following a tight contest.

Kolbe and Biggar subsequently became teammates when Biggar joined the South African at Toulon and struck up a friendship in the French city.

"Myself and Dan is a long story," Kolbe said.

"Obviously what happened in 2022 up in Pretoria, then joining up at Toulon [and] playing together.

"Dan is just a competitor on the field and a guy you would like to have on your side. He just gets under the ref's skin.

"But he is a wonderful player with a lot of experience - he has been around the park for a long time.

"We are friends - he is a good guy," Kolbe added. "But when the weekend comes we obviously know what we need to do represent our countries.

Wales very nearly pulled off a shock series victory last year but were ultimately sunk by a late Damian Willemse penalty in the third and final Test as the Boks prevailed 32-29.

Earlier, the South Africans had comfortably won the opening Test 30-14 before the Welsh pulled off a 13-12 upset in the second Test.

And with Wales already showing signs of further improvement under coach Warren Gatland this year, Kolbe knows the world champions are in for a stern challenge in Cardiff.

"They have brought a lot of experience players back, guys like Dan, Alex [Cuthbert] on the wing and Liam Williams at the back," he said.

"They have got a good mixture of experience and some of the younger guys who have been coming through. It's a good team they have picked.

"They have guys that can run the show for them and lead them in the right directions. We have to make sure we are well prepared and study them too."

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