While referee Mathieu Raynal got a thumbs-down from fans after South Africa lost to the All Blacks in Auckland, Rassie Erasmus said the Springboks were the masters of their own demise.
In a poll run by SARugbymag.co.za after the final whistle, more than 50% of readers gave Raynal a rating of either “below par” or “poor”.
The Springboks struggled to adjust to Raynal’s interpretation of the breakdown and missed out on a potential try in the first half after it was adjudged that Cheslin Kolbe had knocked on.
MORE: Kolbe stars as Boks bested
However, reacting to the poll, Erasmus defended the French official, admitting that the Springboks were not up to standard in the 35-20 loss at the Mount Smart Stadium.
“His [Raynal] performance was much better than ours,” said Erasmus on social media.
This came after Erasmus said the Bok coaches “made some errors” and congratulated New Zealand for a brilliant first 20 minutes, during which they opened up a 17-point lead.
Highlights: All Blacks sink slow-starting Boks
Congrats to the All Blacks they were unstoppable in those 1st 20min. We certainly made some errors as a coaching team! Thanks for all the support in good and bad times we really appreciate it!🇿🇦
— Rassie Erasmus (@RassieRugby) July 15, 2023
Photo: Getty Images