John Plumtree, reflecting on his coaching career after stepping down at the Sharks, singles out Erasmus as the standout example of a coach who has never compromised his identity under pressure. Speaking on a coaching podcast, Plumtree argues that Erasmus's authenticity — brandy, Afrikaans music, Twitter controversies and all — is a genuine coaching asset, not a liability, and that up-and-coming coaches should take note rather than try to mould themselves into someone else. He contrasts Erasmus with Scott Robertson, who he felt visibly stiffened once elevated to the All Blacks job, losing the looseness that made him compelling.
Beyond personality, Plumtree identifies something more substantive he wishes New Zealand would replicate: the way Erasmus has made representing the Springboks feel like an almost sacred obligation. He argues that the national-above-individual ethos Erasmus instils — constantly reminding players that the country is bigger than any of them — is a meaningful competitive differentiator, and that the intensity of South African public passion for the Boks is something the All Blacks environment currently cannot match. For Bok fans, it's a rare outside-the-camp endorsement of exactly what Erasmus has built.