Erasmus's Mentoring Scholarship Elevates Springboks to New Heights

Certain wins carry dual importance in the statement they broadcast. Amid the flurry of weekend Test matches, it was Saturday night's score in the French capital that will echo most enduringly across the globe. Not merely the conclusion, but equally the style of success. To claim that South Africa shattered various widely-held theories would be an oversimplification of the season.

Surprising Comeback

Discard the notion, for instance, that the French team would rectify the unfairness of their World Cup quarter-final defeat. That entering the closing stages with a small margin and an extra man would result in certain victory. Despite missing their key player Antoine Dupont, they still had ample tranquiliser darts to keep the big beasts safely at bay.

Instead, it was a case of celebrating too soon too early. Having been 17-13 down, the South African side with a player sent off concluded with scoring 19 unanswered points, reinforcing their reputation as a team who more and more deliver their finest rugby for the most demanding scenarios. If defeating the All Blacks by a large margin in earlier this year was a message, here was clear demonstration that the leading international squad are building an more robust mentality.

Set-Piece Superiority

If anything, the coach's champion Bok forwards are increasingly make everyone else look less intense by comparison. The Scottish and English sides each enjoyed their periods of promise over the two-day period but lacked entirely the same earthmovers that thoroughly overwhelmed the home side to rubble in the final thirty minutes. Several up-and-coming young France's pack members are emerging but, by the final whistle, Saturday night was hommes contre garçons.

Perhaps most impressive was the mental strength underpinning it all. Missing their lock forward – shown a dismissal before halftime for a dangerous contact of the French full-back – the Boks could easily have lost their composure. As it happened they simply united and proceeded to taking the disheartened home team to what one former French international described as “extreme physical pressure.”

Guidance and Example

Post-game, having been borne aloft around the Stade de France on the powerful backs of two key forwards to mark his hundredth Test, the team leader, the flanker, repeatedly emphasized how a significant number of his players have been needed to rise above off-field adversity and how he wished his team would in the same way continue to inspire others.

The insightful David Flatman also made an astute observation on sports media, suggesting that the coach's achievements increasingly make him the rugby coaching equivalent of the Manchester United great. If South Africa manage to secure another global trophy there will be complete assurance. Even if they come up short, the smart way in which Erasmus has refreshed a potentially ageing roster has been an masterclass to other teams.

New Generation

Consider his young playmaker the rising star who skipped over for the closing score that properly blew open the home defense. And also the scrum-half, a second backline player with explosive speed and an more acute ability to spot openings. Naturally it is beneficial to operate behind a dominant set of forwards, with the inside back adding physicality, but the ongoing metamorphosis of the South African team from intimidating giants into a side who can also display finesse and strike decisively is extraordinary.

Home Side's Moments

This is not to imply that France were completely dominated, despite their fading performance. Damian Penaud’s additional score in the right corner was a prime instance. The set-piece strength that tied in the Bok forwards, the glorious long pass from the full-back and the winger's clinical finish into the sideline boards all demonstrated the traits of a squad with notable skill, without their captain.

However, that ultimately proved inadequate, which really is a sobering thought for all other nations. It would be impossible, for instance, that the visitors could have gone 17-0 down to the Springboks and mounted a comeback in the way they did in their fixture. Notwithstanding the red rose's late resurgence, there is a distance to travel before Steve Borthwick’s squad can be assured of standing up to Erasmus’s green-clad giants with high stakes.

European Prospects

Defeating an improving Fiji was challenging on Saturday although the next encounter against the All Blacks will be the contest that accurately reflects their autumn. The visitors are not invincible, notably absent an influential back in their center, but when it comes to converting pressure into points they remain a cut above the majority of the European sides.

The Thistles were particularly guilty of missing the chance to secure the killing points and question marks still hang over the red rose's ideal backline blend. It is acceptable ending matches well – and much preferable than losing them late on – but their commendable winning sequence this year has so far included just a single victory over world-class sides, a one-point home victory over the French in the winter.

Next Steps

Therefore the importance of this next weekend. Interpreting the signals it would look like various alterations are anticipated in the matchday squad, with key players returning to the lineup. Among the forwards, likewise, regular starters should return from the beginning.

However perspective matters, in sport as in reality. In the lead-up to the upcoming world championship the {rest