Erasmus warns All Blacks' bench 'monster' Aumua will test Springboks in lineout battle

Rassie Erasmus has identified All Blacks reserve hooker Asafo Aumua as a player to watch when South Africa and New Zealand meet in the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry Test series opener at Ellis Park, describing the bench option as “a monster” while acknowledging the Kiwis will bring genuine set-piece firepower to the contest.

New Zealand have selected two locks standing over 203 cm in the second row and moved Tupou Vaa’i to blindside flank, a clear signal that they intend to match the Springboks’ famed lineout physicality rather than avoid it. Erasmus, speaking at Thursday’s press conference, was quick to point out that his own squad is no less imposing.

“Pieter-Steph (du Toit) is pretty tall, Eben (Etzebeth) is pretty tall, Ruan (Nortje) is pretty tall,” Erasmus said. “So I think we’re just as tall as them. They’re a little bit younger, 23, and I think the other guy is 25.”

The Springboks head coach stressed that raw height is only one variable in a lineout contest, pointing to the hooker’s throwing accuracy and the sophistication of each team’s calling system as equally decisive factors. He reserved particular praise for All Blacks starting hooker Codie Taylor. “Codie Taylor is such a good lineout thrower,” Erasmus said. “I think it’s going to be a very closely contested area of the game.”

On Aumua, who is set to carry significant impact minutes off the bench, Erasmus was direct: “Obviously the reserve hooker playing off the bench is a monster; you can see that. He’s a physical guy.”

Erasmus also acknowledged that New Zealand have evolved tactically since last year, specifically in how they deal with contestable kicks — an area that caused them problems in 2024. “They’ve got this new thing where the winger runs back and he catches it,” he said. “I think it’s a wonderful strategy; I think it’s very clever. Obviously, we will look around a few opportunities to counter that. It’s a good plan, very innovative.”

The All Blacks’ stated intention to play at a relentless pace was not lost on Erasmus either, who noted that the numbers back up the rhetoric. “They have probably doubled the breakdowns, double the passes that they had in Razor’s era,” he said. “They want to run you off your feet and make sure they win their breakdown ball, whatever it takes.”

Erasmus declined to treat the tempo threat as mere pre-match noise, adding: “They can’t go away from what they are saying now, because what they are saying on social media, what they are saying in press conferences, is they’re going to play fast and intense, and people must try to keep up with them.”

With both sides carrying genuine size, a sophisticated tactical kicking game, and contrasting but credible attacking philosophies, Erasmus summed up the mood simply: “I think it’s such a close contest.”