Erasmus clear-eyed on weaknesses ahead of November tour

REACTION: A tough five-week tour is looming, and Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus knows that his back-to-back Rugby Championship-winning team is not firing on all cylinders yet.

The Springboks are holders of back-to-back World Cups, the Lions series, double Rugby Championships, the Freedom Cup and the Nelson Mandela Plate..

There are a lot of positives to get excited about, but strong opposition like France and Ireland are chomping at the bit to have a go at the No.1 team in the world.

The Springboks kick off their end-of-year tour on November 1 against Japan at the Allianz Stadium. After that, tough outings against France, Italy, Ireland, and Wales follow.

So the question begs: Can this Springbok team improve and be any better?

Knowing South Africa’s coaching guru, the answer is most probably an emphatic Yes.

South Africa utilised close to 50 players during the tournament. And yet, some big names have been absent – either through long-term injuries or loss of form.

On Saturday, following their historical victory over Argentina in the Rugby Championship decider in London, Erasmus was clear – the performance was far from perfect. A lot of work was still ahead.

He accepted that building squad depth came at a cost. The relentless mixing up of the team was not only to get new talent up to speed and game time under their belts; it also helped to prolong the careers of the senior players in the squad.

“I think one of our goals is to stay in the present, do well, and not just focus on the World Cups like a lot of people want us to do.”

“But I think definitely trying to build squad depth played a role in the lack of continuity,” Erasmus told reporters after the Test match.

“We gave a lot of guys chances. I think we gave 47 players a chance. I would’ve loved to give Faf [de Klerk] more chance, would’ve loved to give Franco Mostert more chance.

“And we must be honest with ourselves. Ntuthuko Mchunu is not here, Gerhard Steenekamp is not here, Salmaan Moerat is not here, Cameron Hanekom is not here, Evan Roos is not here, and Elrigh Louw is not here.

“And I can go on.

“Edwill [van der Merwe], Kurt-Lee [Arendse], [Aphelele] Fassi – so we also had to dig deep.

“We are still in a good position for the World Cup draw, but there’s no doubt we have five tough matches ahead and a lot of work to do,” the coach concluded.