Nov 6 - South Africa captain Siya Kolisi welcomed the return of several senior Springboks from Japan to domestic clubs and paid an emotional tribute to former Sharks teammate Hyron Andrews ahead of his funeral on Saturday.

Hooker Malcolm Marx, flanker Pieter-Steph du Toit, flyhalf Manie Libbok and loose-forward Kwagga Smith are all returning to South Africa, strengthening the local game in the build-up to the 2027 Rugby World Cup.

"I think it's good for the Springboks," Kolisi told reporters on Friday ahead of their Nations Championship clash with Italy in Turin on Saturday.

"Just think about the young guys coming through who will have the opportunity to learn from players like Pieter-Steph, Kwagga and all those guys.

"That's really huge and those South African derbies are going to be something else. All the teams are getting stronger and bringing in quality players.

"The URC (United Rugby Championship) is going to be on fire."

Lock Andrews died at the Lions team hotel last month aged 31. He played alongside Kolisi at South Africa’s Sharks franchise.

“I think it's starting to sink in for a lot of us because it feels like we were just with him the other day," Kolisi said. “I played with him, and I know there are guys who were very close to him, so I know how tough it has been for them.

"But when you think about his wife, who is like family to us, we saw her at games all the time. She supported him throughout everything and travelled all around the world to support Hyron. And now there are the two kids as well.

"I can imagine how tough it is for us and his friends, but I can't imagine what it's like for her and the kids.

"I really have no words. Hyron was an amazing human being. I don't think anybody can say anything bad about him."

South Africa won a bruising series against New Zealand 3-1 and now have another tough run of games. They play France and Ireland after Saturday's match against Italy before completing a run of four successive weekends with the Nations Championship finals.

"We're good to go. We're used to doing this," Kolisi said. "It's never hard for us to get up for a game. We're excited to finish strongly, and we're playing in a new competition, which is also something to be excited about." REUTERS