Change Agent

NEW SPRINGBOK COACH RASSIE ERASMUS WANTS TO CREATE A WINNING CULTURE WRITES JON CARDINELLI.

- Jon Cardinelli

The trophy awarded to the Springboks for beating the British & Irish Lions in 2009 sits in a cabinet at SA Rugby headquarters. It is surrounded by a host of sevens titles that are held by the Blitzboks.

“Take those out and there won’t be much left,” someone chirps when they see me studying the glass shelves. There’s no Webb Ellis Cup or Rugby Championship trophy in this cabinet. There’s no sign that the Boks have won anything of significance since that series against the Lions nine years ago.

New director of rugby and Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus hopes to change that. After his official appointment in early-March, he vowed to turn things around in the lead-up to the 2019 World Cup.

“It’s one hell of a job,” Erasmus admits as we take a seat in his modest office. We speak at length about the past two years, a period that saw the Boks winning 11 out of 25 Tests and, at one stage, falling to seventh in the World Rugby rankings.

Erasmus acknowledges the challenges he will face as director of rugby and head coach. He believes his experiences of coaching the Cheetahs, Stormers, Irish club Munster, and even the Boks at certain stages over the past 14 years, will aid him in his quest to take the South African team to the top.

“I always thought this opportunity would come along later in my career – if I was good enough,” the 45-year-old says. “Now that it’s here, I feel I am ready for it.”

COACHING INFLUENCES

Erasmus played 36 Tests for the Boks between 1997 and 2001. The flanker spent a lot of his free time analysing the opposition and was recognised as one of the most technically astute players of his generation.