Springboks coach Rassie Erasmus has yet again been honoured at the Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria for his contribution to rugby. And fans belted out their infamous remix – The Cranberries’ Zombie – in doing so.
The Irish song – which became a Rugby World Cup favourite – was played during Leinster’s clash with the Blue Bulls on Saturday, 15 June. The SA home team won the match 25-20.
Meanwhile, SA is set to play against Ireland in two test matches on 6 and 13 July in Pretoria and Durban, respectively.
RASSIE REMIX IS A HIT AT LOFTUS
In a clip posted on SuperSport TV’s social media account, Loftus Versveld Stadium revellers sang along to The Cranberries’ 1994 hit song Zombie.
However, the crowd changed the chorus lyrics to “He’s in your head, He’s in your head. Rassie, Rassie, Rassie”.
The account tweeted, “Bulls fans give us a preview of what’s to come when Ireland are in Pretoria in a couple of weeks.”
The “remix” – honouring the SA Rugby boss, who has signed on to coach the Springboks until 2027 – was played during the Rugby World Cup when South Africa played against Ireland. The Springboks also sang it in their changing room following their World Cup victory.
The song was again played at the Sharks vs Bulls clash in December, which also took place at Loftus.
Fans also sang the song at OR Tambo International while awaiting Rassie’s return from the Rugby World Cup last year.
In March, the Irish song was played during the URC’s Bulls vs Stormers game at Loftus.
‘RASSIE HATES THE IRISH’
Meanwhile, Irish rugby player Simon Zebo has joked that Rassie Erasmus “hates the Irish.”
Speaking on the Kick Offs and Kick Ons podcast, the Munster player said of the upcoming test series: “It was a little bit extra around South Africa because Rassie had coached us here at Munster, and Jacques Nienaber is now coaching at Leinster, and there is a big rivalry.
“Rassiehatese the Irish. He really doesn’t like us, which is quite funny. It will build up even more and it drip feeds into the players.
He added: “It’s going to be a juicy test series for sure.”
WHO WILL SPRINGBOKS PLAY IN 2024?
The Springboks will face off against these countries in 2024….
- 22 June: SA vs Wales (Twickenham, London)
- 6 July: SA v Ireland (Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria)
- 13 July: SA v Ireland (Hollywoodbets Kings Park, Durban)
- 20 July: SA v Portugal (Toyota Stadium, Bloemfontein)
- 10 August: Australia vs SA (Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane)
- 17 August: Australia vs SA (Optus Stadium, Perth)
- 31 August: SA v New Zealand (Johannesburg – Emirates Airline Park)
- 7 September: SA v New Zealand (DHL Stadium, Cape Town)
- 21 September: SA v Argentina (Estadio Unico Madre Ciudades, Santiago)
- 28 September: SA v Argentina (Mbombela Stadium, Nelspruit)
- 10 November: Scotland vs SA (Murrayfield, Edinburgh)
- 16 November: England vs SA (Twickenham, London)
- 23 November: Wales vs SA (Principality Stadium, Cardiff)