Rassie Erasmus’ 60-day ban from all rugby-related activities will end on Saturday, 15 January, signalling a return to work for SA Rugby’s director of rugby.
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Erasmus has quickly come to the end of the World Rugby ban from all rugby activity after his infamous 62-minute video in which he criticised the governing body’s match officials – in particular Australian referee Nic Berry – after the first British & Irish Lions series Test in July 2021.
Erasmus will officially be able to resume most Springbok job-related activities from this weekend onwards, but will only be able to be involved on match-days towards the end of the year.
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In a New Year’s message, Erasmus has made it clear that it’s time to stop talking about the 2019 World Cup and to now focus on 2023.
Erasmus, who famously led the Springboks to the 2019 World Cup title, remains an incredibly popular figure in South African rugby circles.
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Erasmus stepped away from the Boks’ head coach role after the 2019 World Cup and is currently the SA director of rugby overseeing all aspects of the game in the country
In his final year as head coach, he coached the Springoks to a Rugby Championship and the World Cup in 2019, and was named World Rugby’s Coach of the Year.
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Under Erasmus and his coaching team, the Springboks climbed from seventh to first on the official World Rugby rankings between the beginning of 2018 and end of 2019.
The 49-year-old has remained prolific on Twitter in recent months, though, sharing videos and messages with his 78 800 – and counting – followers.
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Rassie Erasmus makes his intentions clear
Starting off the new year with another social media post, Erasmus reiterated it was time to “park 2019 and only talk 2023” as he made it clear that all of the team’s attention would now shift to defending their world title.
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TIMELINE TO RECAP HOW RASSIE ERASMUS CASE UNFOLDED:
Thursday, 22 July – World Rugby appoints Marius Jonker as TMO for the Test series after Brendon Pickerill is forced to withdraw because of Covid-19 disruption.
Friday, 23 July – One day before the first Test, reports emerge simultaneously in all major British & Irish news outlets that Gatland is ‘furious’ about Jonker’s appointment.
Saturday, 24 July – First Test. A number of controversial refereeing decisions and inconsistencies go against the Springboks. Siya Kolisi later admits he felt disrespected by referee Nic Berry.
Sunday, 25 July – Springbok management attempt to contact World Rugby and Nic Berry for clarity. WR doesn’t respond, while Erasmus later states that Nic Berry was “asleep” at the time he tried to get hold of him the Sunday after the first Test.
Monday, 26 July – The new training week starts for the Springboks but World Rugby has yet to provide any feedback from Saturday’s game.
Tuesday, 27 July – With only three on-field training sessions remaining before the second Test, World Rugby provides its feedback from the first Test. Erasmus makes the now infamous video in response to what he deemed to be insufficient clarity.
Thursday, 29 July – Rassie Erasmus’ video to World Rugby is leaked online.
Saturday, 31 July – Second Test. The Springboks bounce back with a convincing victory in an ill-spirited affair with plenty of off-the-ball incidents.
Monday, 2 August – World Rugby confirms that both Erasmus and SA Rugby will face a disciplinary hearing as a result of the leaked video.
Saturday, 7 August – Third Test. Springboks seal the series with a 19-16 victory in the final Test.
Tuesday, 24 August – Erasmus’ disciplinary hearing commences. His lawyers maintain that he did not leak the video.
Thursday, 26 August – Springboks release a media statement saying that Erasmus would not be travelling with the side to Australia for the Rugby Championship to allow the players to remain focused.
Saturday, 6 November – With the case dragging on, Erasmus appears in the coaches box as the Boks fight back to claim a win over Wales in the opening game of the end-of-year tour.
Saturday, 13 November – Rassie returns to his role as a water carrier for the game against Scotland, with some criticising him for his sideline ‘coaching’.
Wednesday, 17 November – Erasmus receives a double suspension from World Rugby, with SA Rugby stating they will appeal the verdict.
Thursday, 25 November – SA Rugby and Erasmus withdraw their appeal, and apologise publicly to the officials. The matter is considered closed.
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