Top referee working with Springboks on laws ‘alignment’

The Springboks will soon feature in a fast-approaching Rugby Championship before heading into key warm-up matches for the World Cup, which kicks off in September.

Prior to the start of the season, the Springboks had hoped to secure the services of former leading official Nigel Owens as a so-called ‘referee coach’, with Erasmus having made an informal offer to the Welshman earlier this year to gauge his interest.

However, in the end, Owens was unable to take up the offer, and it’s unlikely that any other ‘formal’ appointment will now be made.

Having said that, leading South African referee Jaco Peyper will be spending time with the Springboks in camp before he heads off to a Rugby World Cup referees camp.

“This week we focused on the work we did last week and just building on that layer upon layer. We are definitely not a polished product yet. There is still a lot of work to do and one of the aspects that we brought in this week was for Jaco to join us before he heads to Toulouse for his camp,” Jacques Nienaber said early this week.

“It is great to have him with us. He is helping us work through all the new directives from World Rugby and makes us attentive and touching up to ensure we are all aligned with the referees.”

SPRINGBOKS FULLY AWARE OF THIS ROLE’S IMPORTANCE

Ever since 2019, the Springboks – under the leadership of Erasmus and Jacques Nienaber – have been all too aware of the influence officials can have on the result of crucial games.

Rassie, as no one will have forgotten, has also served two World Rugby bans in as many years due to criticisms of officials that have made its way into the public space.

In the latest episode of a fascinating ‘Inside the Boks’ series, there is a closer look behind the scenes at the Springboks’ planning for the World Cup, while Erasmus can also be seen briefly telling the players about the thinking around this prospective ‘law expert’ appointment.

“We are even looking at the law and referees, and trying to find someone who is responsible for that and can come to you individually and talk to you about the law, and the penalties you give away,” Erasmus commented, before adding: “And (they can) tell Rassie to fu**ing shut up and not talk to the referees.

“(So we want to) get somebody in the management who communicates to World rugby because obviously it’s something big.”

This article originally appeared on The South African.

Image via South Africa Rugby website.