VIDEO: The 'secret' to Boks' World Cup success

Eddie Jones may be a ‘persona non grata’ in England and Australia, but his opinion is still respected in large parts of the World.

In South Africa, he will be best remembered as a key member of the 2007 World Cup-winning Springbok’s backroom staff.

In the latest edition of Jim Hamilton’s Walk the Talk series on RugbyPass TV, out on Tuesday, June 18, Jones explains why the Springboks went back-to-back in the World Cup.

Jones said it is very much a ‘mental’ thing with SA players – an “incredible belief” in their ability to play the game.

Touching on the 2015 World Cup and Japan’s famous win over the Boks, he pointed out that Allister Coetzee from 2016 attempted to change the team’s identity and play a more expansive game.

“For South Africa, that is not their identity,” he said of the attempt to change the Bok game to the Stormers’ ‘side-to-side’ approach.

He pointed out that Coetzee was axed because he didn’t deliver the results that were required.

“They brought in Rassie [Erasmus], who goes back to THE dyed-in-wool South African game,” Jones told Hamilton.

“Let’s kick, chase, hit them, give them the ball and when we get a counterattack, we’ll go,” he said of the 2019 World Cup-winning formula.

Jones also pointed out that going from Super Rugby to the United Rugby Championship was a significant difference in the way South African players were developed.

“They went from looking after every one to looking after the best,” he said of the approach to the game in South Africa.

(WATCH as Eddie Jones talks about the reasons behind South Africa’s ability to win back-to-back World Cup tournaments….)

Jones also stated the obvious when he pointed out that the South African school system produces an endless stream of talent.

The Japan mentor also believes the Craven Week provincial tournament gives everyone a chance to put their hands up for national honours.

“They bring the players through and change the way that the domestic players play the game.

“They went back to their really strong identity and it has been such a success.”

Jones felt that while Erasmus was the strategist in terms of the Boks game, he was not sure who was the brains behind the country’s approach to developing the players.

@rugby365com

* To watch the full interview on RugbyPass TV on Tuesday, June 18, CLICK HERE!