Siya Kolisi is captain of the South African rugby team. Until very recently My Good Self had no idea who Siya Kolisi was. The Rugby World Cup in Japan educated me.

It turns out that Siya Kolisi is quite an impressive young man.

Given that Rugby was, for many years, the game of the white man in South Africa, it is no mean achievement that Kolisi has risen through the ranks, from the townships of Port Elizabeth to junior and high school scholarships, to eventually become the first black man to captain The Springboks.

There were many highlights in the World Cup just gone. Ireland’s demolition of Scotland, which provoked a national outbreak of optimism. The brilliant Japanese who burst the Irish bubble in no uncertain terms and brought us all crashing back down to reality. The amazing performance of England against The All Blacks. Arguably their greatest ever day on a rugby field.

The stand out moment for My Good Self came when the action was all over and South Africa were champions. Kolisi was interviewed for television. He spoke in a way that Nelson Mandela himself would have been extremely proud of. He was humble, gracious, talked of the problems facing his homeland and urged his fellow countrymen and women to come together to tackle their various challenges, as his own team had just done. It was a great sporting moment. A great moment full stop.

Two years ago, whilst on a walking holiday in South Africa I got chatting to a black university student who was out for the day with his white friends. . Just friends hanging out together. Colour of skin was immaterial. I came away from that meeting with the belief that there is hope for South Africa.

Listening to Siya Kolisi reinforces that belief.