Comment by Mike Greenaway
The imminent first Rugby Championship of the new World Cup cycle should be an absolute cracker, as some of the best brains in the business go head-to-head.
Rassie Erasmus needs no introduction after his left-field thinking and maverick innovations won South Africa two World Cups, while the new Wallaby coach, Joe Schmidt, has been acknowledged by many to have built the foundations of the Ireland era that current coach Andy Farrell has taken to another level.
Schmidt and Erasmus have a history going back to the South African’s two years in charge of Munster (2016-2017).
The Ireland head coach worked closely with the provincial coaches, and Erasmus has said he was very impressed with Schmidt’s work ethic and attention to detail.
New Zealander Schmidt – who played 29 games for Kiwi team Manawatu before settling on a coaching career – is already having an effect on the Wallabies after the disastrous World Cup tenure of Eddie Jones.
The Aussies could not get out of their pool after Jones made drastic changes to the team personnel. His gamble failed, and Schmidt has picked up the pieces with much-improved showings against Wales and Georgia.
With respect to Wales, the Boks on August 10 in Brisbane and Perth a week later will be a much sterner examination of Schmidt’s attempt to rejuvenate the Wallabies.
Argentina have also changed coaches. Controversial Aussie Michael Cheika has moved on, and he has been replaced by the popular former Pumas flyhalf Felipe Contepomi, who played 87 times for Argentina.
But it is the ‘Rassie v Razor’ challenge that is exciting world rugby. The Razor in question is new All Black coach Scott Robertson.
In personality, he could not be further from his predecessor, Ian Foster.
Robertson is often seen skateboarding to the beach with his surfboard in his hometown near Christchurch, and he says he gets his best ideas when synchronised with the sea and waves are crashing around him.
Of course, the world has seen the videos of him breakdancing after his Crusaders team had inevitably won a Super Rugby title.
The energetic Robertson won five Super Rugby and two Super Rugby Aotearoa titles as head coach.
Rassie on 𝘈𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘴
— Springboks (@Springboks) July 24, 2024
Rugby has always been part of his life 🏉
Episode 5: Rassie Erasmus on falling in love with rugby ▶️#ForeverGreenForeverGold #Springboks pic.twitter.com/l6wZ0ic3y6
Robertson played 23 Tests as a loose forward for the All Blacks between 1998 and 2002, while Erasmus was capped 35 times for the Boks between 1997 and 2001.
On three occasions, Rassie and Razor were in direct opposition as loose forwards for their respective teams.
This was during the Boks’ blockbusting period under coach Nick Mallett and captain Gary Teichmann, and Erasmus won two of those three Tests against Robertson.
Now their rivalry moves to the coaching arena.
Erasmus has tasked himself with evolving the Boks’ playing strategy and developing the next tier of players ahead of the 2027 World Cup in Australia, while great things are expected of Robertson after the Foster era saw the All Blacks plunge to a 70% win ratio.
In a strange quirk, one of Robertson’s surfing friends and a former All Black teammate, Tony Brown, has been hired by Erasmus.
Rassie Erasmus: “We are travelling to Australia with good groundwork already in place, and hopefully that pays off” - more here: https://t.co/qGgD8qfuoB 🛫#ForeverGreenForeverGold #Springboks pic.twitter.com/qDgRlyQeXE
— Springboks (@Springboks) July 31, 2024
When Brown was asked about Robertson, he smiled and said: “He is unique. He will have a scary impact on the All Blacks.
“Scott has the invaluable attribute of getting the very best out of players. They will do anything for him.”
All of this adds up to what could be the most thrilling Rugby Championship in years, and it could leave the northern hemisphere green with envy.
Erasmus, Schmidt, Robertson and Contepomi are rugby geniuses in their own ways, and southern hemisphere rugby will be the winner.