Rassie Erasmus has become one of the beloved South African sports activities figureheads, having led the Springboks to back-to-back World Cup titles as coach and director of rugby, whereas he additionally oversaw a victorious British & Irish Lions collection triumph in 2021.
Erasmus is now again as head coach of the Springboks in a new contract that may see him lead the crew to the Rugby World Cup in Australia in 2027.
According to extremely revered rugby author Hendrik Cronje, Erasmus is now set to have a brand new accolade added to his CV, with the North-West University (NWU) apparently set to award him an honorary doctorate.
Springbok boss: Dr Rassie Erasmus
Key continued position
Erasmus lately mentioned he was grateful for the belief positioned in him by SA Rugby’s management to steer the nationwide crew as soon as once more.
“It is a massive honour to coach the Springboks, and I am grateful for the trust placed in me,” mentioned Erasmus. “The primary distinction between the final 4 years and this season is that I shall be extra hands-on on the subject periods.
“In my position as Director of Rugby within the final 4 years I continued to oversee the crew constructions and technique together with Jacques and the opposite coaches, so it must be a straightforward transition again into the top coach position.
“One of our key pillars in the last few years was building player depth and we are excited about the talent available to us this season,” mentioned Erasmus. “Most of the 2023 World Cup-winning gamers are nonetheless accessible for choice, and a number of other younger gamers now have the posh of worldwide and World Cup expertise, which is invaluable at Test stage.
“We have a difficult Test season forward with a Test Series in opposition to Ireland on Saturday 6 and 13 July in Pretoria and Durban, and we face Portugal for the primary time ever per week later in Bloemfontein within the Incoming Series.
“We then have an exciting Rugby Championship campaign, which features two home tests against New Zealand on Saturday 31 August and 7 September in Johannesburg and Cape Town, before facing Argentina in Nelspruit on Saturday, 28 September.”
