The first time I came across Rassie Erasmus was shortly before the 2007 World Cup, when I was invited to go on a safari in South Africa.
I was heading back to the UK to take charge of Saracens and Jake White, who was the Springboks boss at the time, asked if I wanted to spend a week with the team and join them on a trip into Kruger National Park.
Rassie was a young coach, working as the team’s technical advisor. By chance when I was visiting, he was offered a job with the Stormers in Super Rugby, so Jake asked me if I wanted to step in. I said yes and had a brief handover period when Rassie gave me his computer. It was like something out the 1950s, a huge old thing. It was so heavy.
I opened it up and he had the most complete dossier on opposition players that I had ever seen. He had so much detail on all the teams that South Africa were playing at the World Cup. Scrum and lineout plays. Honestly, it was incredible. It was another level to anything I had ever seen before.
Technology in rugby wasn’t a big thing in 2007. We didn’t have iPads and live feeds of player data. Rassie was years ahead of everyone else. All of that research helped us win the World Cup that year. He was an innovator and he still is today.
Rassie took on the Stormers job and came back to the Springboks in 2017. His first Test in charge was against England, who I was coaching at the time. I got the impression that he knew what he was doing. Selection changed almost immediately. Great players like Victor Matfield and Fourie du Preez were reaching the end of the track, so Rassie came in and changed everything.
Rassie Erasmus’ level of technical detail was another level to anything I had seen before
I first met him when South Africa head coach Jake White asked me to replace Rassie as Springboks technical director for the 2007 World Cup
He played 36 times for his country as a back-row forward, then entered the Springboks’ coaching team in 2007 as a technical advisor
He took over from Allister Coetzee and they were polar opposite coaches. Allister was more about feel and humanity and wanting to play the game expansively. He took them back to old-style Springbok rugby, with 45 kicks a game. You could see the work ethic of the team shift.
Whenever I face the Springboks, Rassie always leaves me a nice bottle of Pinotage with the team manager. He’s a very friendly guy but behind that you know there’s a dogged determination. I see a guy who loves the game and all of its camaraderie. But above all, he wants to win.
He suits the Springboks perfectly. Hard, tough, let the opposition have the ball and kill them on the counter-attack. He brought back their aggressive defence and they went on to win two World Cups, in 2019 and 2023.
Rassie has changed South African rugby at every level. The nationalistic pride in South Africa is extraordinary. The players have massive financial incentives to play for their country. When you factor in the cost of living in South Africa, they are probably the highest-paid rugby players in the world. England’s players will earn more but your money goes further in South Africa.
Everyone sees the national team and the guys in the Springbok jersey, but his influence runs deeper. He’s very involved in the politics of it all, where other national coaches have their hands tied a little bit.
The youth development system in South Africa is very good. They’ve got a very good school system with a very mobile unit of four or five coaches who consistently go around picking up young talent.
That’s working because you’re now seeing brilliant backs come through like Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, Damian Willemse, Cheslin Kolbe and Edwin van der Merwe. They’re getting picked up because Rassie has created a system that works.
Most teams rest on a Monday because rugby is a physical game. Rassie makes his players train hard on a Monday and if you don’t play, then you don’t get picked. He’s got so many resources that he can create that competitive environment. I can’t do that with Japan because we don’t have enough players. England can’t do that either because they don’t have as much depth as everyone thinks, particularly at tighthead prop.
He’s a very friendly guy but behind that you know there’s a dogged determination. I see a guy who loves the game and all of its camaraderie. But above all, he wants to win
He suits the Springboks perfectly. Hard, tough, let the opposition have the ball and kill them on the counter. He brought back the aggressive defence and they went on to win two World Cups
They’ve got a very good school system with coaches who consistently go around picking up young talent. You’re now seeing brilliant backs like Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu (centre)
If you don’t have that depth, then then your players end up knackered and we’ve seen that with Maro Itoje. Guys like Jack and Tom Willis, Dave Ribbans and Kyle Sinckler would really boost England’s depth but Steve Borthwick is not allowed to pick them because they play in France.
Jack Willis is the guy who would improve the England team immediately. He has improved considerably as a player since he went to Toulouse. His body shape has changed, which tells me he now understands how to be a top professional. He used to carry a little bit of timber. He’s not only playing in a competitive team where you don’t get picked if you’re not performing, but captaining it too.
He’s got himself super-fit and he looks like a different player. He’s always been good over the ball but now he’s got a huge work rate, and his attacking game has improved after working with guys like Antoine Dupont. He is not just a fetcher anymore. He is a complete forward.
The only countries blocking players from moving overseas now are New Zealand and England. I’ve been watching Japan in the football World Cup and they don’t have a single player who plays in Japan. Their team is more competitive than ever and the J-League is thriving.
The inevitable consequence of professionalism is that you’ve got to allow players to play where they want to. Who am I to tell the RFU what to do… but it’s time to change the rules. If I were picking the team, Jack would start against the Springboks this weekend.
England had a bad run in the Six Nations and there is no reason they shouldn’t be coming out of that slump now. They have got a good mix of senior players and young guys, so they should be close to their top condition.
I think sticking with Steve was the right decision but now he needs to settle on his 10. I think Alex Mitchell is the best scrum-half so you would expect him to double up with his Northampton Saints team-mate Fin Smith eventually.
They need to start getting the best out of their attack. They played a structured, methodical attack last year but now they want to play a bit flatter and faster. They’ve got to start scoring more points and that comes down to your ability in the opposition 22.
Jack Willis (left-hand side of the trophy) has become a complete player at Toulouse after learning from the great Antoine Dupont (right-hand side of the trophy)
Steve Borthwick (left) is the right man for the job but he has to pick a No 10 and stick with them – for me, that man is Fin Smith (right)
South Africa are able to power their way over, but you also need the rugby courage to get the ball wide and execute. That can come down to skill, cohesion and knowing what you are looking for.
South Africa will come out and try to blast England. If England can hang in there and keep in the fight for 20 minutes, then the pressure will go back on to South Africa. The Springboks are expected to win and if they score 15 points early, then it will be a long day for England.
Only one thing should matter for Pollock
Henry Pollock will get a few jeers – the South Africans love all that – but I think he enjoys that. He’s a good player. As long as he’s doing his work on the field, which he seems to be, then you can let the other stuff go.
He’s no average Joe… but it won’t cost England this week
Joe Lewis, who has left Steve’s team to join the Springboks ahead of this weekend, was a great servant to English rugby in the analysis team. He is a good guy with a particularly good feel for the lineout.
All the lineout coaches we had really valued Joe. International rugby has become much more fluid over the last 15 years and people move around.
He’s a good addition to the Springboks but I don’t think his inside knowledge will be a decisive factor this weekend.
Maul the merrier
The new maul rules could benefit South Africa because they are so powerful – but I don’t think they can maul more than they already do!
I’m interested to see how the mauls go this weekend.
Referees have been told to clamp down on defenders creeping around the sides and I think it’s a sensible change. The maul became ugly because too many players were sliding around.
These are issues World Rugby should be dealing with faster. Rugby is such a complex game and if something looks stupid, then it probably is stupid.
It could benefit South Africa because they are so powerful – but I don’t think they can maul more than they already do!
