Pollard on returning to English club: ‘We got a few boos!’

After a whirlwind couple of weeks, Handre Pollard has rejoined his English side Leicester as attention shifts back to club duty after winning the World Cup with the Springboks.

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Handre Pollard of course slotted a sensational kick to knock England out of the World Cup at the semi-final stage, and Telegraph Sport reports that “as the Tigers squad were welcoming back their World Cup stars, they viewed a highlights package of the tournament. Once Pollard’s winning penalty against Steve Borthwick’s side – which featured Leicester’s Dan Cole, George Martin, Ollie Chessum and Freddie Steward – was shown, jeers cannoned around the room. All in jest of course.”

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Pollard took it all in his stride.

“I got a few boos!” he commented. “It was all in good spirit. It’s painful [for the England players] of course, I’ve been there, I’ve lost in a World Cup semi-final before, it stays with you the rest of your life. But these guys are all so young still and have got so much potential. Freddie and George and Ollie, they’re just going to learn from it, come out the other side so much better rugby players and people. It could be for the better in the future.”

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Pollard reflects on crazy celebrations

After winning the World Cup, the Springboks celebrated for days on end, including a blockbuster trophy tour.

“It was a tough week,” Pollard said with clear subtext to how the celebrations took a toll. “A real tough week – but enjoyable. The first two, three days were the most enjoyable because it was just us as a team, still at the hotel – from Monday we travelled for a couple of days. It was just us together; once you land in South Africa it’s crazy, chaos, and you don’t really get the time together again.

“There wasn’t a lot of sleep at all. Some guys – I don’t know how they do it to be honest. I thought I was pretty decent at having a good time but I’m terrible at it looking at the standards they set. There were a few guys – Damian Willemse, Cheslin Kolbe didn’t hold back. As soon as somebody gets tired, the next guy jumps in and gets it going again. It was unbelievable.”

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