Just in:Rassie Erasmus explains how he nearly wrote off Springboks star in 2018.

Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus has revealed that he nearly wrote off Makazole Mapimpi in the early stages of his Boks career.

Erasmus took over as coach of the Springboks in 2018, which was the same year Mapimpi made his international debut. Speaking with his assistant coach Mzwandile Stick on Smash Sports podcast, Rassie admitted he did not trust Mapimpi when he started coaching the Springboks.

“So the thing that we always try to say is as long as you are a warrior, you’ve got a chance with us and we like to make guys feel safe in the team. Just one or two of the mistakes that I made where I understand the player. For example the Mapimpi thing. I was new as the Springboks coach because and it was also foreign,” he said.

Rassie explains why he gave Mapimpi a chance

“I gave Mapimpi a chance and because of what you [Stick] went through and you knew Siya and you know the mistakes, you’ve made the mistakes yourself, and you know when somebody gave you help or believed in you could turn it around.

“Some guys you help and they don’t turn it around and those are the guys that unfortunately always say they had all the talent but they didn’t, they didn’t have the discipline part, they didn’t have all the talent.

“But with Mapimpi, I remember he caught the ball and then he rolled himself and he had two knock-ons in a row but he stayed on the field, stayed on the field and when we came into the room and we analysed the game. Mapimpi never spoke, I didn’t know if he could speak English in those days – but I was willing to write him off,” Rassie admitted.

“We know what my Mapimpi eventually became, but I sat in that meeting and I said, ‘Listen here, no, I don’t trust this guy’.”

Sticks said he knew Mapimpi was injured during his conversation with the team doctor.

“The communication between him and Mapimps, he kept saying ‘My knee, my knee’ and then the doc explained to me that he has got a problem with the cartilage. At that time, you [Rassie] hadn’t got that report yet and your frustration was that we lost and I remember we said that we always want to select warriors.

“So for you (Rassie), it was a sign that Mapimpi wasn’t a warrior that after every tackle he was lying down and you were getting frustrated with that,” Stick added.

Stick spoke to Mapimpi regarding his injury

Erasmus admitted he got it wrong by not realising that Mapimpi was playing with an injury and was still willing to stay on during the match.

“Yes but first I had to get it wrong and say I don’t trust this guy,” he said. “This guy doesn’t talk, he just says ‘My knee, my knee’ and again that’s where I was stupid enough to think that a guy will stay on in a Test match and try to make it but not see the actual warrior and we will trust the guy to come off of his injured but he didn’t even know how bad his injury was.

“I guess that’s what say if you didn’t help me out then say let me talk with the guy, Mapimpi might not have been the Mapimpi he is today just one little miscommunication saved us there,” Rassie concluded.

What is your favourite Mapimpi moment?