LONG READ Why South Africa's 'Dad's Army' are defying convention

It’s almost 30 years to the day since Alan Hansen delivered one of sport’s most infamous lines. On BBC’s Match of the Day, the Liverpool and Scotland legend was dissecting Manchester United’s 3-1 defeat to Aston Villa on the opening weekend of the 1995–96 Premier League season

“You can’t win anything with kids,” Hansen bellowed, questioning the logic in manager Alex Ferguson fielding six players under the age of 22.

We all know what happened next. Those ‘kids’ – David Beckham, Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs, Nicky Butt, Gary Neville and Phil Neville – would go down in history as the ‘Class of ’92’, winning a combined 79 major trophies across one of football’s greatest dynasties.

Hansen became a punchline. But he wasn’t entirely wrong and might have escaped infamy if he’d fleshed out his argument. What he should have said was, “You can’t win anything exclusively with kids.”

That United side had Peter Schmeichel (33) in goal, Steve Bruce (36) marshalling defence, and Eric Cantona (30) pulling the strings up front. Youth flourished because experience anchored it.

Every coach in every sport knows that finding the right mix of youth and experience is vital. However, there is no set recipe. What works for one group might not work for another. Rassie Erasmus is cooking by his own rules.

If he wanted to, the Springboks coach could name a starting XV entirely made up of players in their 30s without sacrificing much quality. For the Rugby Championship opener against Australia, 10 players in the match-day 23 are in their third decade of life.

This is not a weakness or a sign of decline. In fact, South Africa’s experienced core are so effective that they have made themselves virtually undroppable.

Erasmus Springboks have pushed the dial both as a collective and individuals. Of all the players born before 1992 who played in the Rugby Championship and Six Nations since the start of last year, South Africans pretty much dominate.

When looking at the numbers since the 2023 World Cup final, it is clear that South Africa’s older hands contribute more across the park than their rivals of a similar age. In this time, the Springboks’ average age of their lineups are a full year older than any other Rugby Championship or Six Nations side. They’re also the only nation among the top 10 to be averaging at least two players older than 33 in their lineups.

This has not compromised on their quality though we shouldn’t be surprised. Four of the last six winners in both the Six Nations and the Rugby Championship have had older starting lineups than their competitors. The last three World Cups have been won by teams with an older average age than their main rivals.

Erasmus Springboks have pushed the dial both as a collective and individuals. Of all the players born before 1992 who played in the Rugby Championship and Six Nations since the start of last year, South Africans pretty much dominate.

Mapimpi leads in tries per game (1.19), metres (69), jackals (0.51), line-breaks (2.04), and dominant carries (67.7%). Mbonambi (0.35) and Kolisi (0.27) round out the top three in tries per game.

Of the players in the top teams aged 33 and above, Vincent Koch has the best tackle rate (96.6%) and Damian de Allende beats the most defenders per game (2.65). Both players, along with Kolisi and Mapimpi, are in the top five on several other metrics. The only one not topped by a South African is try-assists. Beauden Barrett’s 1.16 per game sees him well clear of Mapimpi’s 0.51 in second place.

Erasmus has stuck with familiar faces for so long not out of loyalty but because they keep producing. In other teams this might create problems down the road as a bottleneck of talent can clog the pipeline. We’ve seen champion sides fall flat because those waiting for their turn are either inexperienced or are brutally exposed once they step out on centre stage.

The conveyor belt of talent hasn’t created a bottleneck, it has created an inferno under the feet of every incumbent tasked with pulling on the green and gold jersey. It has compelled senior players to put in extra hours in the gym, to charge again and again into contact and at the ruck

The Springboks under Erasmus don’t seem to have that problem for two reasons. One is a unified acceptance that the team is greater than the sum of its parts. The mythology that Erasmus and his coaching staff have inculcated, along with the zealous fanaticism driven by Kolisi and other senior players, means that every squad member stays hungry. Whether that’s Mapimpi itching for one more run out or Edwill van der Merwe champing at the bit. Every player within the group has been made to feel that they both belong and that, when given their opportunity, they can add value.

Another reason is South Africa’s sheer strength in depth. Recently a few popular accounts on X shared the depth charts of some of the game’s leading teams. According to one graphic posted by Jarred Wright of Planet Rugby, a fifth Springboks XV could feature Evan Roos, BJ Dixon, Jaden Hendrikse and Marvin Orie. These are hardly world beaters but all of them would get a game in both the Rugby Championship and Six Nations if they’d been born in another country.

In that same graphic Thomas du Toit – the Premiership’s most valuable player – is in the fourth XV. So is Faf de Klerk and Cameron Hanekom. This conveyor belt of talent hasn’t created a bottleneck, it has created an inferno under the feet of every incumbent tasked with pulling on the green and gold jersey. It has compelled senior players to put in extra hours in the gym, to charge again and again into contact and at the ruck. Because they know that as soon as they stop adding value they’ll be out the door.

South Africa’s senior players continue to raise the bar higher every year. 35-year-old Cobus Reinach is on the bench for the Australia game this Saturday. So is 34-year-old Franco Mostert. In a sport where the average career length is between 10 and 12 years, this longevity is remarkable.

Around the world ageing teams are unkindly given the moniker of ‘Dad’s Army’. Alan Hansen might once have suggested that you can’t win anything with grandpas. But perhaps we need to rethink a few tropes. Erasmus has a platoon at his disposal that could be called the ‘Ballie Brigade’. And if you think that’s an insult, you only have to look at the stats.