South African pundits shamelessly decide to launch at Gatland months after Lions tour
Nick Mallett has not let the fact that several months have past since South Africa’s series against the British & Irish Lions, or indeed the fact that the Springboks won the series, stop him from having another pop at Warren Gatland.
Of course, that series has recently been in the spotlight as it was the cause of Rassie Erasmus’ infamous video after the first Test match that led to his ban. But the former Springboks coach recently suggested on SuperSport that the Lions coach was the ultimate cause of that video.
Mallett said that Gatland’s antic’s and comments after the Lions’ match with South Africa A had a major bearing on the first Test, and suggested that is why the Springboks lost that match. He then went on to say that Erasmus’ video influenced the rest of the series as well, while simultaneously agreeing with most of what the Springboks’ director of rugby said in his 62 minute epic.
“Warren Gatland started it with his comment about Faf de Klerk’s tackle, where he said that should have been a red card, he doesn’t understand why, his comment about the TMO being South African, and his comment about Rassie being a water boy,” the two-cap Springbok Mallett said.
“So really he was putting pressure on the referees before and there’s no question that TMO was under pressure in that first Test. I think that had a big part in us losing that.
“Rassie then went on an all-out attack. He went, right I’m going to go through modern media, which is social media, and he’s been found guilty of what he did. There’s no question that what he did had an influence over the next Test and the way the officials treated Siya Kolisi, firstly, and the Springboks, secondly.”
Give it a watch:
