Stuart Barnes: Rassie Erasmus has reinvented the Springboks from ‘global bully’ to the ‘cleverest of rugby thinkers’

Former England fly-half Stuart Barnes believes that Rassie Erasmus is one of the sharpest coaches in the game and that he has turned the Springboks into an intelligent team.

South Africa are renowned for their physicality, abrasive approach to their game and set-piece excellence but Barnes feels that under Erasmus, things have changed with their side’s intellect shifting them away from their bully tag.

Smart, not brave

Writing in his column for The Times, Barnes agreed with All Blacks boss Scott Robertson’s view that Erasmus was not brave but smart to make 10 changes to his starting XV for the second Test against Australia after winning the first game convincingly.

Erasmus made the changes as he continues to build depth ahead of the 2027 World Cup as South Africa aims to become the first nation to win a hat-trick of Rugby World Cups.

Barnes zoned in on the selection of rising star Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, who started both games against the Wallabies and is set to retain the number 10 shirt against the All Blacks and has praised Erasmus for his long-term vision.

“Once derided as the game’s global bully, the Springboks have reinvented themselves as the cleverest of rugby thinkers,” the ex-fly-half wrote.

“Erasmus’s clarity of long-term thinking has played a seminal role in his and his team’s 2019 and 2023 successes.

“Despite the defeat at home by Ireland, the reigning world champions have five wins from six games and an undoubted fluency to add to their attacking ambition post-World Cup… The combination of style and success enables Erasmus to illustrate the intellect of Springbok rugby, time and again.”

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While Barnes was full of praise for the Springboks head coach, he did highlight Erasmus’ ‘stunning error’ in the World Cup semi-finals where he opted to start Manie Libbok over Handre Pollard.

“Everyone knew the rain was coming. It levelled down the semi-final, allowing England’s fast defence to neuter the previously impressive all-round South African game. Libbok is a lovely player to watch but sometimes the elements get a grip on a game. The brave decision to start the player with the poetry at his fingertips was not smart,” he added.

“The smart decision would have been to adapt to the excessive elements and opt for Pollard. As it was Erasmus saw the error as early as the 31st minute and substituted the poetry for the pragmatic.”

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Backing Sacha against the All Blacks

With the Springboks tackling their fiercest foe in Round Three of the Rugby Championship, Erasmus will be poised with a similar selection conundrum with backing the youth of Feinberg-Mngomezulu or the experienced head of Pollard.

While Barnes believes Pollard was the best pick for the semi-final last year, he has called for Erasmus to give Feinberg-Mngomezulu the opportunity to impress much like the double World Cup winner had early in his career when he had a “blinder” as a 20-year-old against New Zealand.

“This is an opportunity to give potential a chance to grow towards greatness. Pollard remains available to come off the bench as he did against England,” he wrote.

“On that day, Erasmus made a mistake not to select him as No 10. This weekend it would be a surprise for Pollard to be picked over the face of the future. The home team can expand and test their attacking limits against their great rivals. Victory in style would be a huge step for South Africa, defeat a small setback. Feinberg-Mngomezulu isn’t a brave selection. It is the smart one.”

READ MORE: Springboks v All Blacks: Five healthy selection headaches for Rassie Erasmus to ponder