AfriPulse
From his days using lights to send messages to players, to the ‘creation’ of the famed Springbok bomb squad, Rassie Erasmus has become renowned for his unique coaching style and innovation, which includes numerous other examples.
Yet, this season has seen one piece of ingenuity truly stand out from the rest.
It has been the decision to turn Andre Esterhuizen into an out-and-out hybrid player, who can slot in just as easily at inside centre or flank.
Consider for a second that Esterhuizen is 31-years-old. The vast majority of his professional career was spent primarily as a centre, and yet Erasmus recognised the ability for this hulking backline star to actually change roles at this latter stage of his career.
It can’t have been easy to tell Esterhuizen to become one of the very few international players who can slot in among the backs or in the forward pack, and suddenly he has become arguably the most valuable member of the ‘bomb squad’ due to this versatility.
The knock-on effects have been remarkable. Suddenly opting for a five-three bench is actually more akin to selecting a five and a ½-two and a ½ bench.
Not only does this afford the Springboks more flexibility and freedom with their substitution selections, but it is a masterstroke that can negate the impact of a red card as we saw just this past weekend.
When lock Lood de Jager was shown a permanent red card against France, there was no need for the Springboks to panic as Esterhuizen was able to fill in among the forwards for certain situations, such as at scrum time, while then shifting into the backline on other occasions – such as at lineout time.
This decision to empower Esterhuizen as a ‘hybrid’ player has resulted in him finding the best form of his international career, and any Springbok matchday 23 without the big man suddenly looks so much weaker.
In short, this role change has been a game changer for the Springboks, and when considering just how unique this strategy is, it may well be regarded as the greatest masterstroke of a Rassie Erasmus era that’s been filled with a host of other incredible innovations.
Andre Esterhuizen flourishing in new ‘hybrid’ role for the Springboks
Reflecting on his latest impact for the Springboks against France, Esterhuizen explained how it was crucial for him to always be ready for the unexpected.
“Usually we speak about it (where I’ll be playing) before the game quite a bit,” he said. “Obviously against France plans changed, but normally before the game I would know whether I would give more cover to loose forward or centre.
“It was a highly anticipated game, but we had to treat it like any other Test match,” Esterhuizen added. “You can’t play a full game on emotion, so we were just sticking to our processes, being physically dominant and taking it through to 80 minutes.”
Man with a plan
The adaptability of the Springboks has become a hallmark of the Erasmus era, and this past weekend it was especially apparent how the needs of the team always come first as the introduction of Esterhuizen required Siya Kolisi t
Source: The South African | Read the Full Story…
