World Cup victory brings hope to South Africa, says Erasmus
SHOWS: YOKOHAMA, JAPAN (NOVEMBER 2, 2019) (IMG/RUGBY WORLD CUP LIMITED - SEE RESTRICTIONS BEFORE USE)
1. (SOUNDBITE) (English) SOUTH AFRICA COACH, RASSIE ERASMUS, SAYING:
"Overall, we started talking about what is pressure and in South Africa pressure is not having a job, pressure is one of your close relatives being murdered. In South Africa there's a lot of problems which is pressure and we started talking about things like that and rugby shouldn't be something that creates pressure on you, rugby should be something that creates hope and we started talking about things that we've got a privilege of giving people hope, not a burden of giving people hope. But hope is not talking about hope and saying you've got hope and tweet a beautiful tweet and things like that. Hope is when you play well and people watch the game on a Saturday and they have a nice braaivleis, well barbecue for people who don't know what braai is... and have a nice barbecue and watch the game and feel good afterwards and no matter of your political differences, or religious differences or whatever, for those 80 minutes you agree with a lot of things you would normally disagree and we just started believing in that and saying 'but that's not our responsibility, that's our privilege to try and fix those things' and the moment you see it that way it becomes a hell of a privilege and you start working towards that and that was the way we tackled this whole World Cup campaign."
STORY: South Africa coach Rassie Erasmus said the New Zealand defeat in the opening game of the Rugby World Cup had helped them handle the pressure right through to winning the final on Saturday (November 2).
Erasmus also said the victories had given his team belief that they could compete with the world's best sides as well as giving hope and uniting the people of South Africa.
The Springboks were the first side to win the trophy having lost a match in the pool phases.
"Overall we started talking about pressure and what is pressure? Pressure in South Africa is not having a job. Pressure is having one of your close relatives murdered.
"In South Africa there are a lot of problems which is pressure and we started talking about things like that.
"Rugby shouldn't be something that creates pressure. It is something that creates hope."
At times it was brutal, often it was downright ugly, but who cares? In the end there can have been few more poignant sights than that of Siya Kolisi, the boy from a dusty, poverty-stricken South African township, on Saturday lifting the Rugby World Cup following an emphatic victory over England.
The first black man to captain the Springboks hoisted the trophy high into the Yokohama night, watching and was instantly showered by golden streamers as fireworks lit up the sky at the end of a momentous triumph.
It was a scene destined for posterity, and sporting showreels the world over, and one which prompted tears from South Africans on the field and off it
This night was all South Africa's as they won their third World Cup to draw level with New Zealand as the most successful side in the tournament's history. With three cups from three finals, they are the only nation with a 100 percent record in the showcase match.
England lost finals in 1991 and 2007, the latter to South Africa, and now join France as three-time runners-up.
