Has the time come to consider a Springbok team without their inspirational captain, Siyamthanda Kolisi? Coach Rassie Erasmus is caught in a predicament.
With Kolisi playing in France, the question is whether the two-time World Cup-winning captain will be able to devote all his time to the Springbok cause.
Erasmus today unveiled his coaching staff and plans but stressed he is still considering whether a foreign-based captain would be best for the Boks.
He would like his captain to be based in South Africa, but yet, is still trying to figure out what will work best for the Springboks.
“What are we going to do about captaincy if we get the feeling that it is doable and they know him so well, the players, because he has worked with them for eight years now? Maybe there is a place for that, but I’ll first have to suss it out and figure it out and see if it works or not works,” says Erasmus.
As one of the masterminds of two Rugby World Cup wins and a British and Irish Lions Series victory, Erasmus, back as the Springbok coach, knows a thing or two about what it takes to win.
“Probably, the three things that will make us stop winning if we work as hard as we did in the past that will give us a good chance, but it is probably the lack of leadership, the lack of creativity or the abundance of arrogance,” Erasmus added.
Erasmus is not losing sleep about which rugby nation wants to claim the world number one status. He does not want that debate to affect the work of building another World Cup-winning squad.
“It can’t make a difference with the way we prepare, the way we select our team the way we operate the way we represent this country and the love we have for the Springboks. So, things like that you hear it but it is not something I write down in a notebook and discuss later.”
Erasmus and the Springboks will be looking for an unprecedented third World Cup in a row, and for Erasmus, World Cups count more than winning percentages.
“I would rather win the World Cup than sit at 88 or 82 or 83 or it is for me a better result than consistently not winning the World Cup at all but being 80 or 85 %,” says Erasmus.
Erasmus has added to his coaching compliment, with specialist coaches and those he and former Bok coach Jacques Nienaber have crossed paths within the past.
“I have always been a big admirer of the way South African teams play, especially the Springboks. My favourite player was Henri Honiball. I probably tried to play the game that way as well and what the Springboks have done over the last two world cups is massively impressive,” says Tony Brown, Springbok Attack Coach.
“Yeah, there is no pressure. No, listen, I was at Munster when Jacques and Rassie came in and I found Jacques is an incredible coach. Like Rassie spoke already about his work ethics and I definitely took a lot from that,” says Jerry Flannery, Springbok Defence Coach.
The Springboks begin the first uninterrupted four-year cycle ahead of a World Cup.
Plans for the 2019 World Cup victory were only enacted in 2018, while a global pandemic had its say in the most recent cycle ahead of the 2023 victory.
