Why Boks coach backs under-fire Etzebeth
Springboks coach Rassie Erasmus talked up the trust ingredient as he backed under-fire secondrower Eben Etzebeth to survive allegations of being involved in a pub fight and racial abuse.
Etzebeth is a lock in the dock as South African Rugby confirmed they would cooperate with authorities in the investigation.
But they insisted former skipper Etzebeth ‘‘would remain a part of the national plans until they were instructed otherwise’’.
Erasmus supported that approach as he confirmed Etzebeth’s place in South Africa’s Rugby World Cup squad despite the untimely and unwanted attention following alleged weekend incidents at a west coast beach resort.
A pub hotel owner insisted Etzebeth had no involvement in a fight inside his establishment last Saturday night and attention will centre on allegations of a second fight in the streets later on.
Erasmus said the controversy was just ‘‘a rumour’’ at this stage.
‘‘I was definitely worried about it when I heard about it, of course,’’ the coach said when quizzed on the matter as he named his squad to contest rugby’s showpiece tournament in Japan which starts next month.
‘‘If there was any truth in it, it would have been a massive issue for us.
‘‘After speaking to Eben and hearing his side of the story, there is obviously trust between a coach and a player.
‘‘I must trust him to do some stuff on the field for me and win test matches for us, and he must trust me to believe him when he tells me something.
‘‘I’m pretty comfortable with what he’s told me and obviously you can’t just believe what someone else says on social media.’’
Etzebeth strongly denied the allegations.
‘‘It is completely untrue and unfounded to claim that I physically or racially abused anyone in Langebaan as has been reported on social media. Multiple witnesses can corroborate that,’’ Etzebeth said in a statement.
SA Rugby said it had ‘‘no tolerance’’ for acts of violence or racism ‘‘but we also trust our people to act responsibly and tell the truth. We have spoken to Eben and he categorically denies any physical or racial abuse’’.
The Springboks open their World Cup against the All Blacks in Yokohama on September 21.