Rassie Erasmus has enlisted former Test referee Jaco Peyper to rebuff All Blacks claims that the Springboks employ time-wasting tactics, in the latest salvo of a pre-series psychological battle that has intensified since New Zealand arrived in South Africa.
Erasmus appeared alongside Peyper, now SA Rugby's law adviser, at a press conference on Monday to address what he termed "a narrative" around game speed. The Springbok director of rugby explained that Peyper was better placed to handle technical questions after the All Blacks had spent the tour promoting their fast-paced approach. Dave Rennie's side have made no secret of their intent to play at tempo, a strategy that yielded wins over France, Italy and Ireland in the Nations Championship last month and subsequent victories against the Stormers, Sharks and Bulls during the Rugby's Greatest Rivalry tour.
Shape of the Game protocols invoked
Peyper referenced agreements reached at a World Rugby Shape of the Game meeting earlier this year, where key focus areas for match officials were established. "That's basically the contract between referees and coaches to say, coach your players to play this way and we will try and referee this way," the former international official said. The meeting, which predated Rennie's appointment as All Blacks head coach, addressed concerns from multiple nations about the direction of the sport, including pushback from South Africa and France against moves perceived to edge rugby union closer to league.
All Blacks captain Codie Taylor and assistant coach Tana Umaga have both suggested in recent days that New Zealand's multi-phase game does the sport "justice", while hinting at deliberate ball-slowing by the world champions. The coordinated messaging from the touring camp has drawn a measured but pointed response from Erasmus, who noted that New Zealand had played four matches on South African soil and that the technical debate required specialist input.
Referee Matt Carley will not hold a joint meeting with either coaching team ahead of Saturday's Ellis Park Test, despite the escalating rhetoric. The decision leaves both sides to interpret the existing protocols without further clarification, ensuring that the opening encounter of the series will be shaped as much by refereeing interpretation as by the contrasting styles on offer. For the Springboks, the challenge will be to impose their set-piece power and defensive structure without falling foul of perceptions that have already been seeded in the public domain.