President surprises Boks star
Win emboldens Boks coach on his path to building a strong squad for the World Cup
Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus vowed to make brave decisions and Saturday’s 23-12 series-clinching win over England will serve to embolden the coach on his path to building a World Cup squad. The second Test win reduced next Saturday’s third and final Test in Cape Town to the realm of dead rubber.
“It is nice to have the series wrapped up, we are breathing easier,” said Erasmus.
“Next week we will try and win three-nil. Next week we will try a few new things [and] put [the] guys under different pressure.”
He warned that his selection policy will remain rooted in rationale. “We want to make decisions so we can put a 31-man World Cup squad together. If you want to build a squad you have to try a few things.
“We have to learn that in the next couple of months.”
It is early days in the Erasmus era but there seems to be a sense of direction in the Bok ranks. Previous Bok coaches have struggled to build capacity while keeping their heads above water.
Most reverted to the tried and tested in game plan and selection.
Erasmus lauded the character shown by his team thus far in the Test series. In both Tests they had to overcome slow starts and wear down England, leaving the tourists to chase the game in the final quarter. It helped that experienced players in the team’s spine who reside abroad like Duane Vermeulen, Faf de Klerk and Willie le Roux proved influential.
“He will always bring experience,” said Erasmus of Vermeulen. “Willie too.
“Duane has played some very accurate rugby. He looks sharp and he’s running great lines. He’s over the ball. He works with Siya [Kolisi] on the game plan and the decision making. You get guys like this who contribute a lot off the field and then you get some who also contribute phenomenally on the field. We are very blessed to have guys like that.”