The Baltimore win over the All Blacks landed with extra meaning for Erasmus — his first match in charge was a largely forgotten 22-20 loss to Wales in Washington DC in 2018, played in front of barely 21,000 people in a stadium nobody wanted to fill. Seven years and 74 Test wins later, 68,173 packed M&T Bank Stadium to watch the Boks dismantle New Zealand 43-28 and clinch the Greatest Rivalry series 3-1. The piece frames this as more than a milestone moment — it's a measure of how completely Erasmus has transformed the programme's standing, drawing on his own reflections and Kolisi's account of what changed culturally when Erasmus took over.
Beyond the sentiment, the article digs into Erasmus's squad-building philosophy: deliberately blooding younger players alongside experienced heads so that by the time a Lions series or World Cup arrives, it's not their debut under pressure. He's candid about the trade-off — losing games here and there to develop the depth that had Tommy Bowe calling South Africa the best two teams in the world after the Dublin demolition of Ireland. Despite the series victory and a record of 43 wins from their last 50 Tests, both Erasmus and Kolisi are pointed in their warnings against complacency, with a likely quarter-final against the All Blacks at next year's World Cup already casting a shadow. Worth reading for the direct quotes from both men on standards, squad philosophy, and what drives this team.