I can’t help but wonder what Rassie Erasmus is trying to achieve by sending out a series of tweets basically criticising the officiating during the Boks’ 30-26 loss to France on Saturday?
If you’re not on social media or don’t follow Erasmus on Twitter, the SA Rugby director of rugby on Sunday tweeted several clips highlighting what can only be described as errors made by Wayne Barnes and his team against the Boks during the loss to France on Saturday.
Does Erasmus believe that sending out tweets of this nature will change the result or help his team in future? Does he think World Rugby will ban certain officials, or apologise to the Boks?
These actions come across as being petty and having sour grapes.
And it must stop.
If SA Rugby don’t stop Erasmus then maybe his friend and coach Jacques Nienaber should try stop him, or the players should step in, or even World Rugby, again, as they did a year ago when they banned him for several months for a video he made criticising the decisions made by the officials in the first Test between the Boks and British and Irish Lions.
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It seems that every time the Boks lose Erasmus feels compelled to highlight mistakes made against his team.
While it is true mistakes were potentially made in Marseille, and in Dublin the week before, it is the nature of the game, where there are so many grey areas, and sport that errors will be made.
Rugby is a game refereed by humans and not everything is clear cut, and black and white. And coaches, players and directors of rugby should accept it as such.
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Can officiating and refereeing be better? Of course it can, and we have every right to demand an improvement to ensure the right calls are made, but resorting to Twitter after every defeat to moan and complain is not on.
Erasmus’ social media musings and clips have potentially done the exact opposite of what he possibly hoped to achieve: irritate and piss off World Rugby and the referees and every time the Boks play they may well kick off on the back foot without even knowing it.