Legendary Springboks lock Victor Matfield recently shared some thoughts on why South African fans are unlikely to harshly criticize head coach Rassie Erasmus after a surprising loss to the Wallabies. Despite a recent stunning victory over the All Blacks in Baltimore, a significantly changed South African squad stumbled in Perth, falling to the Australians in an unexpected defeat.
Just over two weeks following their triumph against the All Blacks, securing a 3-1 series win in one of rugby's fiercest rivalries, the Springboks found themselves in a tough spot during their latest match. Against Australia, their performance was notably shaky, with the double world champions trailing 42-17 with just 15 minutes left on the clock. However, a last-ditch effort reduced the final deficit to four points, a comeback mildly aided by the Wallabies' penalty troubles that saw them reduced to 11 players due to overlapping yellow cards.
Appearing on the show Rugby Rivals, Matfield discussed the second loss in the team's last 14 matches, which includes a span reaching back 12 months to a defeat by the All Blacks in Auckland. Despite the disappointing performance, he highlighted the difficulty in critiquing Erasmus, given his long-standing success with the team. "We haven’t had a two in a row for a very long time," Matfield remarked, underscoring the rarity of consecutive losses under Erasmus' tenure.
“It’s difficult to criticise him. What he has done with the team, what he has done for the country. I mean, if we lose another two or three, then the people will start getting out the swords, but we haven’t had a two in a row for a very long time (November 2022). So, yes, it was a Test match, but it was a friendly Test match."
Matfield's confidence in Erasmus was evident when he spoke about the public's reaction to the coach at a rugby club post-match event. Despite the loss, the crowd cheered for Erasmus, a testament to the trust and belief he has instilled in the fans.
"At the function, I went up and thought it was going to be very difficult, but as I walked up, they started playing ‘Rassie’ and everyone was standing up and cheering after a loss. So, I couldn’t believe it. People believe in what he’s doing, and he’s shown it. We’ve lost in World Cup pool matches, but when it’s important to win games, he gets the guys together.”
While Matfield showed support for Erasmus, he did express confusion over one aspect of the Springboks' tactics during the loss—their kicking strategy, particularly targeting Wallaby Joseph Suaalii, who excelled under high balls, drawing comparisons to former Australian star Israel Folau. “The one thing that I couldn't understand is, we say we are a detailed coaching staff, but a lot of our kicks went up onto Suaalii, who is one of the best guys under the high ball. That's almost like in the old days when you played Australia and Folau was there. You need to have a plan not to kick on him because he was the best in the world under the high ball, so you had to have other plans. Somehow it just felt like all our kicks went to Suaalii, and he was fantastic on the wing. Maybe that’s his position,” he elaborated.
Despite the recent setback, the reverence and support for Rassie Erasmus appear to remain strong among the South African public and former players like Matfield. As the team prepares for future challenges, the strategies and decisions of their head coach will undoubtedly continue to be a topic of both scrutiny and support.
