Springboks head coach Rassie Erasmus says that he gets too much \u201ccredit\u201d for turning Andre Esterhuizen into a hybrid player, revealing whose idea it really was.<\/p>\n
Against the Barbarians last June, Esterhuizen got his first taste of action in the forward pack, coming off the bench in the second half of the match and packing down on the side of the scrum.<\/p>\n
It was the first time that the midfielder tactically featured for Erasmus<\/a>\u2018 men outside of his specialist position, but it would quickly become a trend for the Springboks<\/a> throughout the year.<\/p>\n The 31-year-old went on to feature in 10 Test matches for South Africa last year, seven times off the bench, where he was included among the forward replacements. On paper, it meant that the Boks essentially had a 6-2 and 5-3 split at the same time, depending on the game and team\u2019s needs.<\/p>\n Depowering the set-pieces<\/p>\n While the Bok head coach often gets the credit for the idea to trial Esterhuizen<\/a> in the forward pack, he revealed that it was actually Tony Brown\u2019s idea. Erasmus is pleased with the success of the experiment, but hopes that it doesn\u2019t become too common a trend through World Rugby law changes that depower the set pieces.<\/p>\n He is also pleased that franchise coaches are utilising players in different positions on their own accord and without the influence of the Springboks coaching staff. \u201cI get a lot of credit for Andre\u2019s move, but it was Tony\u2019s idea,\u201d Erasmus said.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you are going to depower the scrum, the maul, the kicking game, we are just going to get more and more hybrid players.<\/p>\n \u201cIf general play is the most important thing, then Wilco Louw will get phased out, and there will be more guys like Schalk Brits who can play flanker, hooker and number eight. Do you really just want players like that all over the place?<\/p>\n Rassie Erasmus\u2019 \u2018honest\u2019 admission on Springboks depth with \u2018monster\u2019 lock on the radar<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cSeb de Klerk played centre for the Pumas when they did really well in the Currie Cup. Marco van Staden is now playing hooker and flanker. We have never taken a guy totally out of his position.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s awesome, and we don\u2019t ask the franchises to do that. They do it themselves with a little bit of contact with us, but we must be careful with it.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s nice because there are about 120 rucks in a game, 12 scrums, 16 lineouts, but if you take those 12 scrums away and it\u2019s almost uncontested, then it would happen more and more but in a bad way.\u201d<\/p>\n Springboks coaches reveal fascinating trend as Felix Jones debunks claims of \u2018more scrums\u2019 after World Rugby\u2019s tweak<\/a><\/p>\n Rassie Erasmus: Where referees are officiating \u201910 times better\u2019 after ex-All Blacks guru\u2019s involvement<\/a><\/p>\n Esterhuizen\u2019s take<\/p>\n Esterhuizen has greatly benefitted from the hybrid role as his Test appearances in 2025 shot up to 10 from four the year prior, while he played just five times in 2023.<\/p>\n The 29-Test cap Springbok was initially reluctant to play in the forward pack during his first stint at the Sharks, but has now embraced adding another string to his bow.<\/p>\n