In the five years he has been at the head of South African rugby, Rassie Erasmus has become a master in the art of sending messages, sometimes in a brutal and direct manner, others in a more subliminal manner.
Tuesday, during his media appearance before the World Cup quarter-final on Sunday (9 p.m.) against France, the Springboks rugby director was asked about the red card received by the Blues four years ago against the country of Wales, who tilted this 2019 quarter-final against them.
Erasmus replied that he remembered it, since it was a South African referee, Jaco Peyper, whom he knows well, who had sent off Sébastien Vahaamahina for an elbow to the face. “I even know he got in trouble for a photo after that match,” he bounced back. Does he expect that France will be able to break out like this again on Sunday? “France does not play violent rugby”, he clearly procrastinated. Before seeing this as an opportunity to send a message: “What the French do well is that when there is a high tackle situation, they show it to the referee. I think they fake it sometimes, which is smart. In certain situations, the referee will use video, and that’s where the French are smart.”
“They don’t use tricks in scrums or mauls, they’re just physical, and that’s the kind of team we respect and want to play against.”
Perhaps he had in mind the last France-Italy, which the Boks have certainly studied closely in recent days. There was this action, when near his goal line, Maxime Lucu collapsed expressively after a clearance from left pillar Simone Ferrari. Initially, the referee validated the Italian try which followed a few moments of play later. Then, under pressure from a noisy public, he reversed his decision, having judged, after using the video, that Ferrari’s clearance was too high and deserved a penalty.
“But France is not a team that lives dangerously, complimented Erasmus, without seeking to deepen a possible controversy. They don’t use tricks in scrums or mauls, they’re just physical, and they’re the kind of team you respect and want to play against. »