Rassie Erasmus emerged from the Springboks’ victory over Scotland with exactly what he wanted, writes MARK KEOHANE.
Writing for the Sunday Times, Keohane dismissed the post-match reaction on social media and TV, arguing the focus on Scotland’s effort and claims that South Africa were below their best overlooked the quality of the Boks’ performance.
“If Scotland were that good and South Africa that fortunate, the scoreline would be 42-28 the other way. It takes a very good team to put 42 points past Scotland.”
Keohane points to the Springboks’ remarkable efficiency, scoring six tries from six entries into Scotland’s 22 after converting seven tries from 11 visits against England a week earlier. He believes that level of ruthlessness, rather than any perceived shortcomings, will most please Erasmus.
Keohane also highlights the bigger picture. Erasmus made 13 changes to the match 23, continued to test new combinations and gave more players an opportunity to prove themselves in a Test environment, all while maintaining a winning habit.
“He has picked so many different combinations, entrusted so many youngsters, and scored 14 tries and 87 points in the process.”
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For Keohane, the individual performances of Ben-Jason Dixon, Zach Porthen, Paul de Villiers, Evan Roos and Cobus Wiese gave Erasmus further confidence in his squad depth, while established stars such as Handré Pollard, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Damian Willemse and Jesse Kriel reinforced why the Springboks remain the benchmark in world rugby.
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“Erasmus got the win and he got more answers than he has to ask questions,” Keohane concludes.
Photo: Ashley Vlotman/Gallo Images
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Rassie Erasmus emerged from the Springboks’ victory over Scotland with exactly what he wanted, writes @mark_keohane
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