Boks have created 'phenomenal' depth
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Former Wallabies back Ashley-Cooper says the Springboks are the “best positioned” team in world rugby.
The Boks underlined their world champion status in 2024 by winning a full Rugby Championship title for the first time since 2009 (when it was still the Tri-Nations), beating the All Blacks twice to regain the Freedom Cup, and going unbeaten on a northern-hemisphere tour for the first time since 2013.
Bok boss Rassie Erasmus achieved this success while rotating his match 23 regularly and evolving the team’s attacking game with input from former All Blacks flyhalf Tony Brown.
"They're the best positioned in world rugby," Mitchell said on the Kick Offs and Kick Ons rugby show when asked about the Boks’ progress this year.
"The depth that Rassie Erasmus has created is phenomenal. He used I think 51 players this year and not because he had to but because they were in a position or privilege where they were so strong that they could afford to make wholesale changes against teams that are still tier one nations.
"By doing that [he] was blooding young guys to that arena so that in the instance that some of these guys don't make it to the '27 World Cup, they've got ready and made replacements.
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"I think he's always innovating, Rassie, he's got genuine superstars. He's got players that can play different types of footy, they can play that 10-man rugby if they need to – if the opposition or conditions call on that – but they can also play expansive.
"Of yesteryear, the Springboks were probably criticised for not being able to play that type of footy but you look at Cheslin Kolbe, [Kurt-Lee] Arendse, [Aphelele] Fassi at fullback, [Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu] … they just have the capacity to really open teams up and play that transition type footy as well."
Photo: Anton Geyser/AG Media
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