Rassie Erasmus will take charge of the Springboks for a record 55th Test as head coach when South Africa face Scotland at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday, surpassing the 54-match mark Jake White has held since 2007.
According to SA Rugby magazine, Erasmus has reached the milestone across two spells in charge, from 2018 to 2019 and from 2024 to the present, winning 75.93 per cent of his 54 Tests so far. SA Rugby president Mark Alexander said there “aren’t any superlatives left” to describe his impact, while chief executive Rian Oberholzer hailed him as “the greatest coach to ever lead the Springboks”. The occasion arrives with South Africa sitting top of the world rugby rankings after last weekend’s 45-21 dismantling of England in Johannesburg.
Pieter-Steph du Toit To Captain Springboks On Rassie Erasmus’ Record Day
Erasmus has named 10 changes to his starting XV for the occasion, with Pieter-Steph du Toit captaining a team featuring 445 caps compared with the 935 that started at Ellis Park. Daily Maverick reports that scrum-half Embrose Papier will make his first Test appearance since November 2018, partnering Bulls team-mate Handre Pollard at half-back.
The head coach played down the record this week. “It’s a nice thing to know but the most important and only thing this week is performing against a very dangerous Scotland team,” Erasmus said.
Scotland, with Finn Russell returning at fly-half, arrive in Pretoria off the back of an opening-round win over Argentina and face the Springboks on South African soil for the first time since 2014. Kick-off is 4.40pm UK time on Saturday.
