It was a day of reckoning for Rassie Erasmus and his Springboks as they fell hard to the Wallabies with a score of 38-22 at Ellis Park Stadium in Johannesburg. An explosive start with 22 points on the board in the first 18 minutes suggested promise, only for it to crumble disastrously in the remainder of the game, allowing 38 unanswered points by the Australians.
"This is one of the most embarrassing press conferences I’ve done in a long time,"
admitted a visibly dejected Erasmus post-match. He didn't shy away from assigning blame where it was due, acknowledging that the coaching staff, himself included, dropped the ball. The tactical prowess of Joe Schmidt’s Australian side was undeniable as they dismantled the Boks' strategy piece by piece.
Erasmus reflected on a recurring issue for the team, recalling a similar situation earlier in the year.
"It was the same against Italy, we were 27-3 up and then we let teams back in,"
he lamented. The game seemed to slip through their fingers just as key players like Siya Kolisi and Marco van Staden suffered setbacks, diminishing their control especially in the breakdowns which they initially dominated.
The Springboks' performance was a cascade of errors and misjudgments, from giving away soft tries to being outplayed in critical areas like scrums and lineouts. "We didn’t scrum them and they beat us in the lineouts. After the first 25 minutes, when Siya got injured and Marco went for an HIA, it slipped away," Erasmus recounted, pointing out the physical and tactical dominance exerted by the Australians.
With an eye on redemption, Erasmus hinted at possible changes in the lineup for the next weekend's rematch in Cape Town despite having previously settled on a team. "We actually already picked next week’s team...but we had a chat now in the changing room and that will probably change," he disclosed, signaling a strategic pivot in response to the day’s shortcomings.
The loss was a tough pill to swallow, not just for the players but for their supporters as well. Erasmus concluded with a stark admission:
"I can try butter it up and bottle it up to sound cool and respectful, but we really dogshit."
The team's effort might have been present, but precision was painfully absent. As they face the looming challenge of the next match, the Springboks are under pressure to not only improve but to redeem their bruised legacy.
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It was a day of reckoning for Rassie Erasmus and his Springboks as they fell hard to the Wallabies with a score of 38-22 at Ellis Park Stadium in Johannesburg. An explosive start with 22 points on the board in the first 18 minutes suggested promise, only for it to crumble disastrously in the remainder of the game, allowing 38 unanswered points by the Australians.
"This is one of the most embarrassing press conferences I’ve done in a long time,"
admitted a visibly dejected Erasmus post-match. He didn't shy away from assigning blame where it was due, acknowledging that the coaching staff, himself included, dropped the ball. The tactical prowess of Joe Schmidt’s Australian side was undeniable as they dismantled the Boks' strategy piece by piece.Erasmus reflected on a recurring issue for the team, recalling a similar situation earlier in the year.
"It was the same against Italy, we were 27-3 up and then we let teams back in,"
he lamented. The game seemed to slip through their fingers just as key players like Siya Kolisi and Marco van Staden suffered setbacks, diminishing their control especially in the breakdowns which they initially dominated.The Springboks' performance was a cascade of errors and misjudgments, from giving away soft tries to being outplayed in critical areas like scrums and lineouts. "We didn’t scrum them and they beat us in the lineouts. After the first 25 minutes, when Siya got injured and Marco went for an HIA, it slipped away," Erasmus recounted, pointing out the physical and tactical dominance exerted by the Australians.
With an eye on redemption, Erasmus hinted at possible changes in the lineup for the next weekend's rematch in Cape Town despite having previously settled on a team. "We actually already picked next week’s team...but we had a chat now in the changing room and that will probably change," he disclosed, signaling a strategic pivot in response to the day’s shortcomings.
The loss was a tough pill to swallow, not just for the players but for their supporters as well. Erasmus concluded with a stark admission:
"I can try butter it up and bottle it up to sound cool and respectful, but we really dogshit."
The team's effort might have been present, but precision was painfully absent. As they face the looming challenge of the next match, the Springboks are under pressure to not only improve but to redeem their bruised legacy.