Siya Kolisi 100 caps loading: How the Springbok centurions fared on their special day

The history books show that milestone matches for players rarely come with a guaranteed win to mark the special day. While teammates often play their hearts out for the man in the spotlight, sentiment only gets you so far at the highest level of sport.

The Springboks have produced eight centurions — and Siya Kolisi will become the ninth when he reaches his milestone — but only half of those legends marked their 100th Test with victory.

So far, Eben Etzebeth, Victor Matfield, Tendai Mtawarira, and Willie le Roux belong to the fortunate 50 percent, while Percy Montgomery, John Smit, Bryan Habana, and Jean de Villiers endured disappointment.

To be fair, three of those four defeats came against an All Blacks side at the height of their powers between 2008 and 2015. Montgomery, Smit, and De Villiers all lost to the party-pooping New Zealanders on their special days, while Habana suffered heartbreak in Perth when the Boks went down by a single point to the Wallabies.

On Saturday night in Paris, Kolisi and the Boks will have to be at their absolute best to overcome a French team driven by revenge and retribution after their 2023 Rugby World Cup quarter-final defeat — at the very same Stade de France.

If the Boks can repeat what they achieved two years ago, it will be the perfect way for Kolisi to mark his 100th Test — at the same venue where he went on to lift the Webb Ellis Cup after that unforgettable final against the All Blacks.

How South Africa’s centurions fared in their 100th Test match

Percy Montgomery (Lost 19-0 v New Zealand, Cape Town, 2008)

John Smit (Lost 29-22 v New Zealand, Soweto, 2010)

Victor Matfield (Won 44-31 v Australia, Pretoria, 2010)

Bryan Habana (Lost 24-23 v Australia, Perth, 2014)

Jean de Villiers (Lost 14-10 v New Zealand, Wellington, 2014)

Beast Mtawarira (Won 23-12 v England, Bloemfontein, 2018)

Eben Etzebeth (Won 30-14 v Wales, Cape Town, 2022)

Willie le Roux (Won 45-0 v Italy, Gqeberha, 2025)

Siya Kolisi... Paris, 2025