Springboks’ shock loss to Japan in 2015 still vivid for Rassie Erasmus
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South Africa coach Rassie Erasmus will lead his side for the Test match against Japan on Nov 1.
PHOTO: AFP
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LONDON – South Africa coach Rassie Erasmus can still remember where he was when Japan beat the Springboks in arguably the greatest rugby union upset of all, but insists his focus will be firmly on the present when they face the Brave Blossoms at Wembley on Nov 1.
The Springboks head into this weekend’s encounter as back-to-back world champions.
It was a very different story at the 2015 Rugby World Cup in England, where Japan’s Karne Hesketh crossed for a last-minute try to seal an extraordinary 34-32 comeback win over South Africa – a pool match remembered as the “Miracle of Brighton”.
Despite not having secured a World Cup victory since 1991, the Cherry Blossoms pulled off a stunning upset against the two-time world champions during Eddie Jones’ initial tenure as head coach.
More recent history, however, favours South Africa, with Erasmus overseeing a 26-3 quarter-final win over hosts Japan during the Springboks’ 2019 World Cup triumph.
“I think I can remember where I was, 100 per cent (in 2015),” Erasmus told reporters after naming his squad to play Japan on Oct 28. The coach took charge of the Springboks in 2017.
“I was in my bar, if you want to know exactly, at home watching the game. That will always be one of the iconic wins for them.”
South Africa have long been one of rugby’s superpowers, with victories over the Springboks highly prized by opponents.
Erasmus had some idea of what the players in Brighton were going through. He was a member of the first South Africa team to lose to Wales – a 29-19 defeat in Cardiff that marked the 1999 opening of the Millennium Stadium.
“I remember when we first lost to Wales, I was a player,” said 52-year-old former Springbok back-rower. “So those kind of things happen. We all have been part of history-making things.”
And there was more unwanted history for Erasmus, as a coach, in August when Australia turned a 22-point deficit into their first win at Johannesburg’s Ellis Park in 62 years.
“That wasn’t a nice feeling,” recalled Erasmus, although the Springboks still went on to secure back-to-back titles in the Southern Hemisphere Rugby Championship for the first time despite that defeat.
Meanwhile, Erasmus remains wary of Jones, who was part of South Africa’s coaching staff when they won the 2007 World Cup (their second of a record four titles).
Japan comes to London after narrowly losing 19-15 to Jones’s native Australia in Tokyo on Oct 25.
“I guess for Japan, that (2015) match will always be one of their greatest moments,” said Erasmus. “And obviously that will motivate them.
“But at this stage when we’re planning a game, we are analysing Japan and how well they played last weekend and how they’re building under Eddie and what they’re trying to do. And we always try to make plans to see how we can win the next match.
“But none of us can run away from how well they did in 2015.” AFP
