Tony: Boks have got everything right

Springbok attack coach Tony Brown says he didn’t hesitate to join Rassie Erasmus’ coaching group when the opportunity presented itself.

Brown told former Sharks coach John Plumtree in part two of a Plumtree Uncut podcast that Erasmus had first been in touch after the 2023 World Cup, but that there had been no further contact by Christmas.

“I didn’t hear from him for a couple of months,” Brown said. “So I thought, ‘Oh, maybe that opportunity’s gone.’”

Argentina’s Felipe Contepomi also wanted the former All Blacks flyhalf, but Brown waited on Erasmus, who finally got back to him.

“He said, ‘Right, we’re keen to sign you if you want to sign.’ And I just said, ‘Yes, I’ll sign straight away.’

“And I’m glad I did. Amazing team to coach. Obviously great country to spend a lot of time in, and it’s a rugby country which, when I was a player and when you toured here, it was special. Now I’m coaching here, it’s special as well.”

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Brown believes the Boks have found the recipe for success, with a talent conveyor belt producing quality young players.

“With how Rassie’s developed this rugby team, that’s exceptional, and then all the young guys coming through and how South Africa have got that right. They’re winning all those U20s tournaments now, so they’ve got everything right in South Africa at the moment.”

As an ex-All Black, Brown says his approach to coaching another country is simple: “If I go into a team, I just commit 100%, because if I don’t, the players will feel that.”

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That commitment comes at a cost, though. His family live in Dunedin, where one daughter is at university and the other at high school.

“It’s obviously a little bit difficult when you’re always away from your family,” he said. “They come to a few games and to the World Cups but the majority of the time they stay in Dunedin and go to school and just get on with their lives.

“I come and go a bit, but we make it work.”

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