A bit of clunkiness is to be expected when combinations haven’t played together but the issue is more players going backwards or stagnating when getting their chances to start, rather than pushing the incumbents.
Mark Telea and TJ Perenara might be the rare exceptions in recent times of players taking their chances in a team with plenty of changes, and suddenly catapulting into the World Cup reckoning.
Jordie Barrett’s emergence as a true midfield option for the All Blacks over the last two months makes for a fascinating squeeze on the positions for next year’s World Cup.
Does his move to the midfield mean Damian McKenzie’s chances of going are enhanced as a fullback option?
And in midfield, is there any room for one of the forgotten men of New Zealand rugby - Jack Goodhue - who last played a test in late 2020 before injuries hampered virtually two straight years of rugby.
A question...
How has Rassie Erasmus gone from being one of rugby’s most compelling figures to being a joke?
I admired Erasmus when I was at the 2019 World Cup for his clear, passionate leadership of the Springboks and the way he harnessed players from many walks of life into world champions, after they were at rock bottom just a couple of years before.
My impressions of him only grew after obtaining the Chasing the Sun documentary series that followed, documenting that journey from when he took over to the scenes at Yokohama in 2019.
His deep affection and pride as he recounted the upbringing of Makazole Mapimpi without much of a family to call on, to then winning a World Cup, brought a tear to my eye.
He has a brilliant rugby mind and that documentary lifted the curtain on a team that used their culture and unique heritage for good.
If you’re new to this story, Erasmus, who is now the South African director of rugby, has again used his Twitter account this week to gibe at the officiating post the loss to France, posting videos and screenshots with sarcastic comments. It’s rubbed off on family members of his players too.
Add that to a ranting video last year in the Lions series and it’s clear his behaviour has cast a shadow on rugby and you would have to think it would be impacting referees in charge of South African games about what Erasmus might say post-game. That’s more than likely his end game, as well as whipping fervent Boks fans up on social media.
The case for the defence has been that Erasmus is just trying to point out errors and get the best for his own team, but it’s gone long beyond that. It reflects poorly on him and in turn, South African rugby. It’s kind of like when Ricky Gervais went from creating some of the greatest TV and podcasts of the 2000s to trying to offend everyone on Twitter for the sake of it.
A conclusion...
Erasmus knows the power he wields with South African rugby fans given his World Cup win. It’s about time he used it properly rather than spending all his time on a website which Elon Musk would be doing us all a giant favour if he shut it down.
