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Look: Rassie Erasmus back as Springbok boss

Dudley Carstens|Published

Coach: Rassie Erasmus part of SA team shake-up. Photo (Steve Haag Sports)

Rassie Erasmus reassumes the role of Springbok head coach until 2027, as part of a new-look national coaching team confirmed by SA Rugby on Tuesday.

Head coach Jacques Nienaber’s departure to Leinster prompted SA’s director of rugby Erasmus, the mastermind behind the Boks’ 2019 and 2023 World Cup triumphs, to return for the next four years and plot an unprecedented three-peat in Australia.

The other Bok backroom staff changes include former Ireland hooker Jerry Flannery taking over defensive responsibilities and ex-All Blacks flyhalf Tony Brown focusing on attack.

New job: Duane Vermeulen. Photo by -(Steve Haag Sports)

Retained from the current staff are Mzwandile Stick (backs), Deon Davids (forwards), Daan Human (scrums), and Andy Edwards (head of athletic 
performance).

Retired international referee Jaco Peyper, meanwhile, joins as the National Laws Advisor.

Also, double World Cup-winning Bok No.8 Duane Vermeulen assumes a “roving coaching role” across all of SA Rugby’s national teams, as the third member of a mobi-coaching unit with Franzel September and Bafana Nhleko.

Erasmus, who is recuperating from a freak accident that left him with serious chemical burns, kannie wag om te coach the Boks once again, and is thrilled about the new appointments.

He says: “It is a massive honour to coach the Boks, and I am grateful for the trust placed in me.

“In my role as director of rugby in the last four years I continued to oversee the team structures and strategy in conjunction with Jacques and the other coaches, so it should be an easy transition back into the head coach role.”

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rassie erasmusduane vermeulenspringboksworld rugby