Nigel Owens reveals reason why he said no to Rassie Erasmus offer

Nigel Owens has revealed the reason why he turned down the offer from Rassie Erasmus to work with the Springboks at the Rugby World Cup in France. The South African director of rugby wanted the retired Test centurion referee on his staff as a law and strategy consultant to smooth things over with the referees at the upcoming finals.

Erasmus had high-profile run-ins with World Rugby over criticism of referees during the 2021 British and Irish Lions series and the 2022 Autumn Nations Series, incidents that result in suspensions for the SA DoR.

It was revealed in early March that Erasmus has contacted Owens, who claimed he was conflicted about what to do – to take six months away from his current way of life on the farm in Wales and throw everything in with helping the Springboks, or turn down the offer to be involved at another World Cup.

Erasmus suggested last weekend that he had every confidence that Owens would accept the offer, telling Sportsmail: “Everyone knows about Nigel. I actually just emailed him. From the outside, he said it’s a goer. From the inside, we will know next week.”

It was reported on Friday, though, that Owens had said no to the Springboks and he explained in his latest weekly walesonline.co.uk column on Saturday why he had reached that decision.

He wrote: “It goes without saying really that to be asked to become part of the coaching team for a side like the Springboks was incredibly exciting and, of course, a huge honour. It’s something that I would have enjoyed doing without a shadow of a doubt. But yet, as I told Rassie this week, I have decided to say no.

“While it is a great privilege to have even been considered for the role, it has simply come at the wrong time in my life. I have still got a lot of commitments here in Wales at the moment and while a few years ago I may have been able to set off for South Africa and spend time away from home for six months, I can’t really do that anymore.

“I have got to think about the farm and all the work that goes with that, as well as my current roles with the WRU, URC and World Rugby. Between overseeing the refereeing academy, coaching officials and doing Whistle Watch, I have got more than enough going on to keep me busy.

“But the main reason why I had to turn down the job is because myself and my partner Barrie have some exciting news to share – we are currently in the final stages of the adoption process and will hopefully be starting our family in the coming months.

“There is not too much I can say at the moment about the process itself, but we are both incredibly excited. It’s something that we have spoken about for a few years now and it’s taken a while to get here, but now that it is happening we can’t wait.

“As any parent will tell you, there is no bigger commitment than raising a child, so that was obviously the main reason why I decided against the South Africa job in the end. I couldn’t, nor would I want to, go away for the next six months with this happening.

“So it’s a case of timing, really. If the Springboks had asked me probably maybe two years ago, then it is something I would have likely said yes to without any real thought. I did sit down with a few people and discuss whether I could do it, but there would have been far too much to work around.

“I could have brought plenty to the table, but it just wasn’t going to work. Rassie has been very understanding all the way through this and I wish him and the team the best of luck when September comes around.”