The British and Irish Lions’ 2021 tour to South Africa was steeped in controversy, largely due to the off-pitch behaviour of Rassie Erasmus. The Springboks chief went out of his way to provoke Lions head coach Warren Garland and even involved Owen Farrell in his war of words.
Erasmus, 52, notoriously brought match officials into question with a 62-minute-long video critique during that summer’s Test series, which saw South Africa triumph 2-1. Additionally, he caused a stir by taking to the field as a water carrier to pass on tactics to his players while leading a South Africa A side in a warm-up game.
Gatland, 61, expressed bewilderment over why Springboks scrum-half Faf de Klerk wasn’t dismissed following a head-to-head collision in the 17-13 defeat. And he later said his team would seek “clarity” from the officials on the incident, as reported by Wales Online.
In a bold retort, Erasmus, who was serving as South Africa’s director of rugby, suggested a rematch, repeatedly branding the Lions as “scared” and “afraid” to face his team. This was merely the start of the head-to-head between the coaches, with Gatland also taking issue with Erasmus’s antics disguised as a water boy
“I don’t know, I think he was trying to wind us up saying we’re scared,” said the Kiwi post-match. “Sometimes he’s capable of doing that. Last night he was the water boy running on the pitch – if you’re the water boy running onto the pitch you’ve got make sure you’re carrying water!
“I didn’t understand what his role was – you don’t run onto the pitch giving messages as the waterboy without carrying water. My advice to him is to make sure he’s carrying water next time he does that.”
England stalwart Farrell, who joined this summer’s tour of Australia as a controversial injury call-up, stirred controversy with several dubious tackles against South Africa A. Erasmus zeroed in on the fly-half, questioning what he perceived as overlooked instances of foul play.
The initial incident involved Farrell wrestling De Klerk to the ground after the whistle had blown, which at the time went without sanction. Erasmus took to social media to share the clip, taking a thinly veiled swipe at Gatland’s plea for clarity.
“If there is time maybe also get absolute clarity and alignment on this one please,” he wrote on X. “I know it’s way after the whistle, but let’s just align and get clarity to be sure.”
The second contentious moment came from a clash between Farrell and South Africa No. 8 Jasper Wiese. Once more, Erasmus believed Farrell had tackled too high, yet the match officials did not reprimand the Lions ace during the game.
