The Springboks are on a charm offensive. South Africa have won two World Cups, a British & Irish Lions series and added a rare Rugby Championship crown this summer to further cement their place as the rulers of the rugby realm. Yet outside of their homeland, there is a sense of a side not feted widely, as much loathed as liked.
And everyone wants to be loved. “You don’t want to make other people unhappy,” Springboks supremo Rassie Erasmus admits. “You don’t want people not to like you. You don’t want people to think you are stubborn. You don’t want people to think you are arrogant, especially if you see the characters in this team.
