PUNCH DRUNK OR BATTLE-READY?

THERE was a time when Rassie Erasmus took orders from Joe Schmidt, and the Springbok coach admits he is nervous going up against his old master when the Springboks host the Wallabies on Saturday at Ellis Park.

- MIKE GREENAWAY

Schmidt is the man respected for building the Ireland rugby dynasty, and Erasmus says he learned from him when he and Jacques Nienaber were coaching Munster in 2016 and 2017.

“Tm not one to suck up other coaches because it doesn’t help your team perform better on match day, but Joe is a great coach,’ Erasmus said, after naming his team for the opening Test of the Rugby Championship.

Schmidt has picked the Wallabies up off the scrapheap - they could not get out of their pool at the last World Cup - and shaped them into a side that almost beat the British and Irish Lions.

“I worked with Joe in Ireland, as did (assistant Bok coaches) Felix Jones and Jerry Flannery,’ Erasmus said.

“When you sign with an Irish club, you don’t sign with Ulster, Munster or Leinster, you sign with the Irish Rugby Union, so we reported to Joe Schmidt,’ Erasmus explained.

“That is what I did for two years. We sat in many meetings together.