Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus has continued his nostalgic posts about his professional playing days, this time posting a picture featuring two late greats – Joost van der Westhuizen and James Small.
The 52-year-old made his Bok debut in 1997 and made 36 appearances before his retirement in 2001.
RASSIE POSTS ANOTHER SPRINGBOK THROWBACK
On Monday, Rassie Erasmus dug up an old picture of him posing with the Springboks squad for an official photo.
In the pics were familiar faces like Percy Montgomery, Gary Teichmann, and André Venter, the father of Bok rookie André-Hugo Venter.
At the time, Nick Mallett headed the team as head coach.
The throwback picture also included the faces of a few who have since passed. They included Springbok manager Arthrob Petersen and players Joost van der Westhuizen and James Small.
Rassie captioned the snap: “Nostalgia. We used to cut the sleeves off with scissors in the change room before the warm-up on matchdays.”
TRAGIC DEATHS OF JOOST VAN DER WESTHUIZEN, JAMES SMALL
During his professional rugby days, Rassie Erasmus briefly played alongside James Small, who retired from the green and gold jersey in 1997.
The world-class winger tragically died at age 50 in 2019 when he suffered a heart attack. Small – who previously admitted to abusing drugs and alcohol – reportedly collapsed in a Johannesburg strip club, claimed TimesLive.
Rassie also had the opportunity to play with Joost van der Westhuizen, who played as a Springbok until 2003. The duo were selected to play in the 1999 Rugby World Cup squad to play in Wales.
In 2017, Joost lost his battle with motor neurone disease. He was 45 years old.
DID RASSIE ERASMUS PLAY AMONG SOME OF THE GREATEST SPRINGBOKS?
Let us know by clicking on the comment tab below this article or by emailinginfo@thesouthafrican.com or sending a WhatsApp to060 011 021 1
You can also follow@TheSAnews on X andThe South African on Facebook for the latest news.
