VIDEO: Rassie's referee tap dance lets Dickson off the hook
Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus opted for the ‘politically correct’ answer when he was asked a question about a match official.
Erasmus, after naming his team for the return Test against New Zealand in Wellington this coming Saturday, fronted up to the media.
While most of the questioning was around the seven changes and the absence of senior players like Eben Etzebeth, Willie le Roux, Jesse Kriel (last week’s captain), Damian de Allende and Handre Pollard, there was also the matter of English referee Karl Dickson’s performance in South Africa’s 17-24 loss to New Zealand in Auckland last Saturday.
Erasmus, who had been heavily banned in the past for his ‘difference of opinion’ with match officials, had clearly learnt his lesson.
While many pundits suggested Dickson had run scared and failed to make some tough calls, Erasmus tactfully avoided any criticism of the English official.
“Since there have been protocols in place, from 2022, we are really comfortable with how we can send stuff [questions about match officials] in and how it’s been handled,” the Bok coach said.
“There are protocols, and we can accept that referees are human and pressure might sometimes get to them.
“With [former Test referee] Jaco Peyper here and Felix Jones, we follow the protocols, which weren’t in place in 2021,” he said of his first ban for the compilation of an hour-long video questioning the performance of Australian referee Nic Berry, who came under fire for his handling of the first Test between the Springboks and the British and Irish Lions.
(WATCH as Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus masterfully sidesteps a tricky question about match officials…..)
“I’m sure New Zealand will have some questions, and we’ll have some questions,” Erasmus said of Dickson’s performance in Auckland.
“We will send that in, and we’re really satisfied with the answers we get back.
“Then we either adapt what we can do with the answers we get from World Rugby, from Joel and his team, Phil Davies and so on.
“We adapt and we even change team selection sometimes, because there’s a protocol in place.
“We just followed that protocol after this game.”
The Bok coach admitted that match officials will be under pressure and may make mistakes.
“Non-biased, [but] sometimes the occasion gets to them.
“I’m not saying that was the case last Saturday.
“There were mistakes [on] both sides.
“I hope that’s a politically correct answer.”
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