The coaching staff and wider team, not Elton Jantijies, should shoulder the blame for the 25-10 defeat at the hands of England at Newlands on Saturday.
That is the opinion of Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus commenting at the post-match presser after he was forced to withdraw the Lions flyhalf with the match slipping away.
“I’ve always said that I don’t like to take my flyhalf off when he’s making decisions, good or bad, and then afterwards we can judge things properly and go and fix what’s necessary,” said Erasmus.
Jantjies was jeered by the home crowd with replacement Handre Pollard cheered, a sign that Newlands had seen enough.
“This time, I could see the pressure was piling up on Elton in the wet, and playing behind a pack that was not dominating. Elton is a grown man, so he understands, and I wanted to relieve the pressure on him and hopefully still go on to win the match.”
Erasmus refused to close the door on Jantijes, so often responsible for excellent attacking play in Super Rugby for Lions. Instead, it was a case of learning about the player in the situation as they plan for the future with 2019’s Rugby World Cup on the horizon.
The Springbok coach also brought into question his own management of the player and selection, especially with series already won.
“I must look at myself more than Elton, and maybe look at the way we managed things this week and integrated players. We had to make some brave calls, and sometimes players will get singled out, or put in positions where they have to sink or swim.
“Others might say it was a case of last-chance saloon [for a player like Jantjies], but we have longer-term thinking in mind.
"Today, we learned a few things, and not just about him, but how to adapt to the sort of conditions we faced. At the end of the day, Elton is a strong character and now he’s got a couple of Super Rugby games to get his confidence back.” – African News Agency (ANA),
