Rassie Erasmus seemed almost apologetic after inflicting the darkest defeat in All Black history. Facing media underneath Sky Stadium with his captain Siya Kolisi after the 43-10 victory, the Springbok coach was quick to point out that his side had been on the other end of such a result, so knew full well how Scott Robertson's side was feeling.
"We've got 57-0. So, you know, there's no need for us to celebrate too much," said Erasmus, referring to the infamous result in 2017 that saw the All Blacks rack up a record score on the Springboks.
"People are going to talk about that because last week they kept the record at Eden Park. They didn't put in our faces. So the scoreline is nice, and for the guys to hang in there is nicer. It's more for us what we trying to achieve. So, I know what it feels like in that changing room on the other side."
Dejected All Blacks players. Photo: Kerry Marshall / www.photosport.nz
While Erasmus wasn't coaching the Springboks for that result in Albany eight years ago, Kolisi was playing, alongside now mainstay squad members Pieter-Steph du Toit, Lood de Jager, Malcolm Marx, Jesse Kriel, Handre Pollard and Damian de Allende.
Kolisi said his side was empowered by their coaches to trust their instinct.
"All our coaching staff, the freedom that they gave us today, the freedom that they gave to the backs," said Kolisi.
"Like shoot your shots and don't be afraid if you make a mistake. But there was a couple of times where the ball went out, or it was a knock on where we had an overlap. Nobody panicked and we just stuck to our guns."
One of the aspects for Erasmus in the coaches' box was the fact that not only did he roll out an almost completely different backline to last weekend, but he then had to adjust it on the fly due to a run of injuries. However, that only made the Springboks even more cohesive, as they ran in five tries in the second half after being down 10-7 at halftime.
In fact, the 36-0 second half scoreline would have been a record losing margin for the All Blacks just by itself. Erasmus said that the performance was not in reaction for the large amount of criticism the team faced back home after losing at Eden Park last weekend, rather to prove their fans right.
Wilco Louw of the Springboks. Photo: Kerry Marshall / www.photosport.nz
"We never do it to prove people wrong. We do it so people keep on believing in us, because we believe in South Africa," he said.
"And I'm not saying to be soppy and, you know, wishy washy. We feel what South Africans do for us. We reminded ourselves after the haka, we had a quick chat about that, that it was hundreds of millions of people back home who trust us to give our best. And we gave our best, I thought today."
The result, along with the Pumas' win over the Wallabies in Sydney earlier on Saturday, means The Rugby Championship is wide open with two rounds remaining. Despite the loss, the Wallabies are now top with 11 points, the Springboks are ahead of the All Blacks on points difference with both teams on 10, with the Pumas on nine.
It sets things up for a now extremely intriguing Bledisloe Cup series, with the All Blacks set to take on the Wallabies at Eden Park in a fortnight.
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