Kyle Steyn has lauded Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus’ rugby genius and how he’s masterminded the team’s success.
The Glasgow Warriors captain, who was born and raised in South Africa before qualifying for Scotland through his mother, spoke candidly about the Boks’ tactical clarity and unwavering belief under Erasmus.
“It comes back to how the game’s evolved that nobody can cover everything, every option or every tactic,” Steyn said on The Rugby Pod with ex-Scotland lock Jim Hamilton.
“It may not be the defining thing, but what I like most about what the South Africans did and what Rassie has done there is that they’ve just picked two or three things and backed those 100%.
“They absolutely hang their hats on that, and then they live or die with the risk that comes with that. I just love that attitude, that you’re going to back yourself to make the plays and force opposition to make plays and see if they’ve got what it takes to be able to get around that.”
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Steyn pointed specifically to the defensive identity forged during the Jacques Nienaber era, particularly the all-out blitz system that became synonymous with the Boks’ back-to-back World Cup triumphs.
“When they first started out with that all-out blitz defence, everybody thought it was ludicrous,” he continued.
“There were so many options out wide to be able to get around them and get into the space, but they just hang their hats on the fact that that’s what they’re going to commit to. And if you get around them, then they’re going to hustle back and have the passion to get back and cover those options, too.
“That’s what the game demands now. It’s not like Test matches of old, where you can just kick, kick, kick and take points and win a game that way.
“The game now is at a level of intensity and a standard that you have to be able to back yourself to make plays and force teams to make plays, and then see if they’ve got the goods to come up with it.”
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