‘This is the greatest generation of Springbok rugby’ – former Boks captain’s take on Rassie Erasmus’ world champions
Former Springboks captain Jean de Villiers and the Boks celebrate winning the Freedom Cup.
After consolidating their dominance over the All Blacks in Cape Town on Saturday, the Springboks are on course to win the Rugby Championship for the first time since 2019.
The Boks have their tails up as they have won all four their matches in the competition – following consecutive back-to-back wins over the Wallabies and All Blacks – and are setting the pace at the top of the standings with 18 points amassed.
Argentina have moved up to second position – after thrashing Australia in Sante Fe on Saturday – a whopping eight points adrift of the Boks, while New Zealand are third and the Wallabies fourth with seven and four points respectively on the table.
On course to Rugby Championship title win
That means Rassie Erasmus‘ troops only need three more points from their two remaining matches – against Los Pumas in Santiago and Nelspruit – for them to win their first Rugby Championship title in five years.
Ex-South Africa internationals Jean de Villiers and Hanyani Shimange are in agreement that South Africa’s current crop of players deserve the title as the Boks best ever team.
Former Boks captain and centre De Villiers, who won the 2007 Rugby World Cup and was part of a Springbok side who beat the British & Irish Lions in 2009, sang the current Bok team’s praises from a dizzy height and believes that it’s not debatable anymore whether they are South Africa’s best ever national team.
“Guys, we must celebrate this Springbok group,” he said on The Verdict. “What they have achieved and what they keep on doing and achieving and performing and the commitment on the field.
“I don’t even think arguably anymore, this is the greatest generation of Springbok rugby. If we look at the depth, if we look at the performances now, now capping it off with the Freedom Cup as well and, you know, I can’t really see them not winning the Rugby Championship either.”
Ex-hooker Shimange, who made nine Test appearances between 2004 and 2006, agreed and said the team’s current success couldn’t have happened to nicer people.
“It’s a golden period and we’ve got to enjoy it, Jean. I mean, since 2019, double World Cup. I think just the schedule has just been teed up perfectly.
You win a World Cup, Ireland come here, All Blacks here. We managed to, you know, to double up in Australia and what they’ve achieved is fantastic and also, I mean, we know a lot of the players personally. They’re good guys.
They’re all very nice, good men, humble guys and where you see it, you know, (4:44) obviously, well, you go on tour a lot. As you listen to the hotel staff and the people that work and whether it’s the airport or whatever and they’re very complimentary about the team.
“They say, gee, your guys are so well-mannered, they’re so friendly, they’re good and that’s away from the cameras, that’s away from the field and that’s the most important thing.
‘They still remain humble’
“The reality is that these guys have just grown and gotten bigger and bigger, but they still remain humble.
At the core of it all, you know, you look at how the team was selected, how they all help each other. A young guy (Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu) comes in, (Handre) Pollard helps him, Aphelele Fassi comes in, Willie (le Roux) helps him.
“So, it’s the correct environment for it and the growth of momentum. I think you’ve got a management team that’s willing to innovate, to look ahead, and that’s what they’re doing and they’re getting results at the same time.”
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