Rassie takes to Twitter to put the heat on Lions again

Rassie Erasmus was gracious in defeat in the aftermath of the Springboks’ controversial loss to the British & Irish Lions in the opening Test of the series. However on Monday he did take to Twitter to point out an example of poor officiating and lack of care for player safety, writes Oliver Keohane. 

Erasmus, who has been fleeting on Twitter since he first began posting after the 2019 World Cup win, stays true to the promise of his bio, in that he does “post some proper stuff”.  Following the Springboks loss, Erasmus immediately tweeted to congratulate Warren Gatland and his squad for a “well deserved win”.

Last week was full of sparring with Warren Gatland in the build up to the first Test, and this week has started with Erasmus pointing to a passage of play that saw Springbok winger Cheslin Kolbe played in the air by British & Irish Lions scrumhalf Ali Price, and not put directly into touch, before being illegally yanked up from the ground by replacement prop Mako Vunipola.

Erasmus’ clip comes after a weekend where Twitter was used to highlight many a controversial call both from the on-field official, Nic Berry, and South African TMO Marius Jonker.

Watch: Questionable calls from Saturday’s game

Respect your attitude in defeat, but there were some questionable calls. I'll highlight a few @Springboks @lionsofficial https://t.co/aU4GgNiQ0n pic.twitter.com/2dHaomajye

— Jaco Johan (@thenosyone987) July 25, 2021

Erasmus tweeted a clip, outlining the two incidents, with the caption: “Cheslin is obviously played in the air and clearly not direct into touch!!More importantly for youngsters watching this clip!!!! Please never move or touch an injured player on the ground, its reckless and dangerous! Leave this to the medics, please.”

Erasmus used emojis to indicate medics, and tagged World Rugby as well as the Springboks and British & Irish Lions official accounts.

Cheslin is obviously played in the air and clearly not direct into touch!!More importantly for youngsters watching this clip!!!! Please never move or touch an injured player on the ground, its reckless and dangerous! Leave this to the 🏥 🙏🏼@WorldRugby @Springboks @lionsofficial pic.twitter.com/lEcp5L4PBf

— Rassie Erasmus (@RassieRugby) July 26, 2021

Expect much more back and forth as tension builds over this week towards the second Test.