Springboks Legend Hits Back at All Blacks Coach’s Allegations Against Rassie Erasmus’ Side

• Rugby World Cup winner Steven Kitshoff pushed back against accusations made by New Zealand coach Dave Rennie about the Springbok scrum
• The All Blacks coach alleged the Springboks did not scrum straight during the first two Tests of Rugby's Greatest Rivalry series in South Africa
• The former South African international referenced scrum coach Daan Human's philosophy at the launch of his new autobiography on Tuesday

Former Springbok prop Steven Kitshoff has firmly denied allegations from New Zealand coach Dave Rennie that South Africa's scrum walked around during the opening two Tests of Rugby's Greatest Rivalry series.

Rennie levelled the accusation following the first two matches of the series, suggesting the Boks had not been scrumming straight. Kitshoff, speaking at the launch of his autobiography, *Kitsie: Memoir of a Bomb-Squad Bok*, on Tuesday, was quoted by Netwerk24 as saying: "I don't think the Springboks were guilty of that. No, definitely not."

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**Daan Human's Straight-Scrummaging Philosophy**

The double World Cup winner pointed to Springbok scrum coach Daan Human as the foundation of South Africa's set-piece approach, describing it as built on power rather than manoeuvres.

"If you listened to Daan's press conference, he said he only coaches one way, and that is to scrum straight. Walking around is a sin in Daan's eyes," Kitshoff said.

He went further, calling it a defining principle within the Springbok setup: "Walking around in scrums is a cardinal sin in Springbok rugby."

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Kitshoff described the Springbok scrum as a deliberate weapon designed to pressurise opponents and force them into defensive positions. The Greatest Rivalry series has already yielded pushover tries, penalty tries and scrum penalties for South Africa, underlining the effectiveness of their approach at the set-piece.

"You want to put as much pressure as possible on your opponents through the scrum and get them on the back foot," he said.

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With the Rugby World Cup on the horizon, Kitshoff suggested the contest between South Africa and New Zealand had taken on added significance. "I think the scene is now set for next year's [World Cup] quarter-final," he said.

Source: Briefly News