Erasmus – The Main Man
Johan “Rassie” Erasmus has been given the extremely difficult task of bringing South African rugby back to somewhere close to past glories of course they won the 1995 and 2007 World Cups and with another World Cup around the corner in Japan, South Africa have replaced Alistair Coetzee after 25 Test Games in charge, he only managed 11 wins in those 25 games.
Rassie Erasmus was in charge of Munster for one season while he was brought in on a three year deal in 2016 alongside Anthony Foley as the Director of Rugby. He guided Munster through the toughest period in recent history after the sudden death of Anthony Foley.
Munster managed to make a European Semi Final and a Pro 12 Final and although both ended in defeat I think Rassie proved his quality as a head coach. Along with Jaques Nienber , Peter De Villiers and Aled Walters Rassie has assembled a smaller coaching ticket than is the norm in South Africa and although people will question why Peter De Villiers has been included after he was sacked from the job in the past.
Aled Walters could be a key inclusion after being tempted away from Munster to take up the position as Head of Strength and Conditioning. It will be extremely interesting to see how quick Rassie can have an impact. He will bring South Africa back to a forward orientated game with a solid defence and then they can build from there. He has signed a 5 year deal with an eye on 2023 in France aswell.
He is a young coach and will be able to mould this side in his image and yes he will have to deal with the delicate issue of player quotas in your squad’s. So he will know his job won’t be very easy but having seen firsthand the impact he had in only a short period in Munster you can be sure he will give the South Africa job his best.
Many supporters in Munster will also say he left Munster in mid season and the constant speculation linking him with a return home left a sour taste in many people’s mouths but his record is very strong and although he didn’t win either Final that Munster got to , they were still very hard to beat and consistent so these two components will be crucial when he takes charge of South Africa later this year….
By
Cian Mc Gibney
03/03/2018