OPINION: Peyper joining Boks is another masterstroke by Rassie

Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus has always pushed boundaries, been open to trying new things and never shied away from asking tough questions.

From his playing days he’s been viewed as something of a maverick. Think of the coloured lights on the roof of the Free State Stadium to send signals to the players on the field, the video of him “teaching” Andre Esterhuizen how to “hit” opponents on the shoulders in the tackle … and then the infamous video of him criticising refereeing decisions in the first Test between the Boks and British and Irish Lions in 2021 — which got him banned.

He introduced forwards-to-backs bench splits of 6-2 and 7-1, he called up a flyhalf in place of an injured hooker at the World Cup and most recently, in a first in international rugby, he asked a former Test referee, in this case Jaco Peyper, to be part of the Boks’ management team.

Peyper into the fold

Erasmus does things the unconventional way. Not always, but a lot of the time, most of what he does works and it has helped turn the Boks into 2019 and 2023 world champions and cement their place among the best teams to have played the game.

Erasmus, too, has become a god-like figure in South Africa, following his turning the national rugby team around after taking over in 2018. Heck, he’s now even a doctor.

The Bok boss’ latest innovation – bringing Peyper into the fold – is another masterstroke, even though it is likely to irritate opposition teams and even currently active referees.

It is brilliant the Boks have a clued-up former referee at hand to ask all sorts of questions about the laws and rules, and discipline, and what’s allowed and what isn’t.

Also, by having someone like Peyper on board, who won’t only assist the players and coaches in the team with laws and disciplinary matters, he’ll also be the man who’ll speak to the media about refereeing decisions in matches, and any controversies that may occur, thus not involving Erasmus or the players in these matters.

Winning in professional sport often comes down to staying one step ahead of the opposition, and under Erasmus, the Boks are certainly doing that.