Rassie Erasmus says Ireland fans are full of themselves as he ramps up mind games

Rassie Erasmus has told the Ireland players and the Ireland fans he loves them...

It is just that those fans can sometimes be 'windgat' - which is Afrikaans for 'full of themselves'.

The Springbok boss, being interviewed by social media yesterday, says he enjoyed everything about being in Ireland and his time there.

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But just took a moment for a RWC2023 barb as there was a selection of Irish fans inserted as a clip into the interview, saying they sometimes can be 'windgat'.

Said Erasmus: “Contrary to what most people think, I can say nothing bad about the Irish."The media likes to hype it (this series and Erasmus's perceived hostility to the Irish) up a lot but I loved it when I was there [as head coach of Munster]."The Irish when I got there, they minded me with my rough Afrikaans accent. I learned a hell of a lot when I was there.“I’m very good friends with most of the players there. I think sometimes, I’ll say it as it is, people are a bit jealous that a country like them with only four or five million people is number 1, 2 in the world."Good things, he concedes, often come in small packages: "They only have 160 professional rugby players.“When they do very well they are very proud and outspoken about it [cuts to three clips of Irish fans outside Stade de France bragging post the 18-13 RWC 2023 win].“But you guys were a bit full of yourselves. You were a bit windgat, you know, and now you see [cuts Bundee Aki crying after the quarter-final]."It’s not something in Irish culture that’s frowned upon. It’s passion, it’s ‘We love our team’ and ‘listen if you come in our way we are going to give you some stick’, I wouldn’t be too hard on them."They’re proud for what they are achieving and if they want to be competitive and they rate themselves with the teams up there.”

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