Rassie Erasmus knows the Springboks, after winning the inaugural Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry, “piss off other people all over the world” but ultimately play for South Africans.
The world champions on Saturday wrapped up the series 3-1 with a six-try 43-28 win over the All Blacks in Baltimore, but Erasmus insisted it was highly competitive across all four Tests.
“No, I won’t say we’re the better team,” he said post-match. “At 60 [minutes], I thought it was still in the balance. We came out to win this because we had more points on the board, and that’s probably the most important thing in most of the games.
“Up until the last 11 minutes, I wasn’t sure if we were going to win. We appreciate that we won, but we definitely don’t think the margin between us and New Zealand is this.”
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Kurt-Lee Arendse’s second-half try was central to the shift in momentum, and Erasmus singled it out as the turning point.
“When Kurt-Lee started burning – of course, Kurt-Lee himself admitted he was going through a bit of a dip, a mental dip and a physical dip, and he had concussions and stuff.
“I thought when Kurt-Lee scored that try, that was pivotal. I thought the game was still there, anybody’s game.”
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With 68,173 fans packing the M&T Bank Stadium, many of them expats, Erasmus thanked the support.
“We just appreciate the South Africans who were here. But hell, we don’t forget the people at home, on the farm or in the township or in the businesses or in the shopping mall,” he said.
“We want to win and feel great for us as a team, but that’s why we play rugby. We just want to please South African people.
“I know sometimes we piss off other people all over the world with the way we play … but we really care the most about South African people. There’s only one reason we do this.”
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Erasmus also backed the series concept, adding: “When this came up on the radar, we said, ‘Ja, for sure’. New Zealand were getting into the communities in South Africa, and the supporters got to see their heroes in the flesh.
“We are proud to be part of this. Not necessarily the win. One day when we’re old, we’ll say we played in 2026, in that first tour when the Greatest Rivalry started again.”
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Erasmus’ 100th Test in charge of the Boks came on the soil where his tenure began with defeat to Wales in 2018.
“Obviously, the first time was awful. A couple of years later, we won against New Zealand. It makes up for that start.”
Photo: @Springboks/X
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Rassie Erasmus knows the Springboks, after winning the inaugural Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry, “piss off other people all over the world” but ultimately play for South Africans.
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