A bald Rassie Erasmus and his Springboks management have left South Africa guessing over exactly what led to them shaving their heads after the world champions’ 3-1 Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series triumph over New Zealand.
Following the Springboks’ 43-28 victory over the All Blacks in the fourth and final Test in Baltimore on Saturday, Erasmus first posted a picture of himself alongside scrum coach Daan Human, with both men sporting freshly shaved heads.
The Springboks coach added a cryptic caption: “the prize of a bet”.
That was enough to get the guessing game started. Three hours later, another picture appeared on social media – this time showing the entire Springboks management team with their heads shaved, including media manager Zeena Isaacs.
Erasmus captioned the post: “reëls is reëls” – Afrikaans for “rules are rules”.
It quickly became clear that whatever the bet was, the entire management team had to pay the price.
And, naturally, South African supporters wanted answers.
Was it a bet that the Springboks would win three matches in a row? Was it linked to the Boks retaining their No 1 ranking? Or was it simply a way of marking Erasmus’ 100th victory in charge of the world champions?
The theories came thick and fast, but Erasmus and his management team have remained tight-lipped.
Even captain Siya Kolisi joined the bald revolution, posting a picture of himself with his head shaved alongside Erasmus after the thrilling victory. Kolisi captioned his post: “Special day for the boss @rasrugby 100 up 🙏🏾❤️ Danko coach, iyabulela ilali 🇿🇦 #bleskop”
Whether Kolisi was part of the original bet or simply decided to join the celebrations remains another mystery.
For now, Erasmus and his management are keeping their cards close to their chests – leaving South Africa with one burning question after another historic series win: What exactly was the bet?
