Rassie Erasmus and SA Rugby once again have the whole rugby community worldwide buzzing with their actions.

But this time it is not about the ardent way in which they stand up for law and justice, but rather about the way they apparently went to lie on their backs like scared little dogs to surrender in battle.

Erasmus and SA Rugby issued a statement in which they announced that their appeal against World Rugby’s ruling was withdrawn following the controversial “Rassie video”, while they apologized for the whole matter.

Is this action just a strategy in a bigger fight or has SA Rugby really raised the white flag?

Seen in the light of Erasmus’ character as a strategist and warrior, this action is very strange at first glance.

However, if the events of the past weekend after the match between Wales and Australia are taken into account, Erasmus and SA Rugby’s actions appear to be a very smart move on the chessboard.

Australia’s coach Dave Rennie was furious when he addressed the media after the match in which his team lost to Wales. This match was also riddled with obvious mistakes by both the referee and some of his assistants, including the TV referee, Marius Jonker from South Africa.

In a verbal attack of almost ten minutes, Rennie spoke out during a media conference against the match officials and he basically openly stated that he believed his team was cheated.

In light of this, Erasmus and SA Rugby’s apparent surrender and submission to the authority of World Rugby could now put enormous pressure on the world governing body to act against Rennie as well.

If they do not do this, World Rugby will be exposed in the eyes of the entire rugby community around the globe as dishonest, inconsistent and biased towards South Africa.

The pressure on World Rugby is further increased due to the fact that no South African has been nominated in any of the individual categories (Player of the Year, Coach of the Year, Breakthrough Player of the Year or Sevens Player of the Year) for the organization’s annual awards. However, Rennie is one of the nominees for Coach of the Year, although his team could only win 50% of their matches in 2021.

South Africa, on the other hand, have won eight of their 14 matches in 2021 (almost 60%), including a series victory against the British and Irish Lions and an away win against the All Blacks. More important is the fact that South Africa ends the year as the world’s top team according to the official rankings.

So, fasten your seat belts and get more popcorn, because this circus is far from over.

SA Rugby and Erasmus’ full statement reads as follows:

“SA Rugby and Rassie Erasmus wish to apologise to the match officials appointed to the first Test of the Springboks’ Series against the British & Irish Lions.

“We also confirm that SA Rugby and Erasmus have advised World Rugby that they withdraw their Notice of Appeal and will not lodge an appeal against the sanctions imposed by the Judicial Committee.

“This has been a highly stressful and charged environment with unusual pressures placed on all concerned and we have no wish to prolong that experience for anyone.

“We have drawn a line under the incident and only wish to look forward. We will respect the outcomes of the hearing, allowing our national teams and rugby operations to plan with clarity for the coming months”.

Do you have more information about the story?

Please send us an email to editorial@rekord.co.za or phone us on 083 625 4114.

For free breaking and community news, visit Rekord’s websites: Rekord East

For more news and interesting articles, like Rekord on Facebook, follow us on Twitter or Instagram