Fate has a beautiful gift coming for Rassie and the Boks

Springboks head coach Rassie Erasmus is chuffed that his new attack guru, Tony Brown, is staying put in South Africa until the 2027 Rugby World Cup.

He’s plastered memes on social media like the insecure boyfriend who needs to keep posting couple photos to show how secure they are. Brown’s decision to stay in the relationship has Erasmus elated. All is well, it seems.

Meanwhile, in New Zealand, it is turmoil with the unfortunate rot getting cleaned out. Scott Robertson has left his post as head coach just two years into it. The All Blacks are in a sick cultural state, and it will take NZR to find the right medicine.

Springbok Women star Yonela Ngxingolo talks about facing Black Ferns later this year

Springbok Women star Yonela Ngxingolo talks about facing Black Ferns later this year

Hard times create strong men. Strong men create good times. Good times create weak men. Weak men create hard times. The cycle is as old as time. The All Blacks are in hard times and need a strong man, like Jamie Joseph.

But down in little old New Zealand, it could be the dark before the dawn if they get it right, a feeling Erasmus knows all too well from 2018. The All Blacks have a history of rejuvenation from challenging times to climb back strong. Just ask the 2023 Ireland side.

So while few will believe it, Erasmus is likely heading towards his ironic fate in 2027 with his comfortable squad and comfortable coaching group.

Knowing full well that three consecutive Rugby World Cups will finally break new ground, it is no doubt something he must desire deeply. Because all of the Boks acheivements so far are just the Temu version of the 2015 All Blacks.

The All Blacks already went back-to-back, winning 42 times with only three losses in between, scooping all the Rugby Championships in between. The Springboks have finally got traction in 2024-25 after literally doing nothing between 2019-23 and their two lottery Cups.

The Springboks’ cakewalk run in 2019 was a beautiful underdog story fuelled by circumstances. A world-title run over just Italy, Japan, Wales and England. The 2023 lottery had even less aura, three jammy one-point wins and the hollowest of hollow World Cup final wins with 15-on-14 players.

Erasmus is the luckiest of them all. The LOAT. But at some point, your luck runs out at the Casino.

Now the Springboks are finally the real deal; they are the best team in the world with the best player in the world in Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu.

And this is the fate that awaits the Springboks: they will be the best team between the World Cups and get sent packing in the knockout stages.

They scammed into two World Cups by being extremely lucky, now they are actually the best team and they’ll get rolled, a twist of fate that will confuse as much as surprise.

It will be hard to figure out what went wrong, what could’ve been done better, because all was going so well. There will be no logic to it. And that’s what will befuddle the genius as much as anything. The one World Cup that looked as probable as ever will slip away like the fine sand on the Perth beaches.

They will be so close to doing something the All Blacks hadn’t, only to be set in stone their rightful place in second behind the team in black.

There’s too many body shots taken on their record already to stand side-by-side with the 2015 All Blacks. They need the 2027 World Cup to surpass, but unfortunately for them, they are peaking right now.

The good times they are enjoying will create internal weakness. The young, brilliant players that have emerged over the last two years only know the good life. Only know the highs. They have not been tested when it counts at all.

The old veteran forwards that have all the scars and all of the knowledge, they will be over the hill physically. Deep down, Erasmus knows this, but as long as they keep winning in 2026, emotions will get the better of him, and he will bring them to Australia.

There will be waves and waves of South Africans who will pay a high price to come Down Under to see the Boks, ex-pats and those who have made the pilgrimage, making huge financial sacrifices.

It will be enormous support at levels unseen before, based on the expectation that the Springboks will deliver their third consecutive Rugby World Cup. This time around it won’t be just hope from the fans, it will be expected.

The expectation will be ruthless. It’s now an identity thing for the many bandwagon Bok fans that have hitched themselves to the team. It’s not unconditional support, it’s anchored to winning World Cups. It’s shallow, it’s surface level, and it won’t last the second they lose the Cup.

It will all come crashing down with a horror exit at the hands of the Australians or Kiwis, the traditional owners of South African rugby.

So here’s to another great year of Springbok rugby in 2026, undefeated hopefully.