YOKOHAMA – Pity the person responsible for the Springboks' laundry. Never mind the 23 festering jerseys. How do they keep Rassie Erasmus's shirt so dazzlingly white?
You might have thought the South Africa coach was whipping a new starched number out of the packet each week, given the armpit-yellowing stress of guiding a team to the Rugby World Cup final. Not so.
"Every time last year, since I started coaching and we lose a match, I changed my clothing. Last year, I had to change quite a lot of clothing, because we lost quite a lot," explained Erasmus.
"This year, I only had to change it once. So, I'm hoping I can wear this until the end of the final. This is my lucky shirt so far. It's my church shirt."
He has worn white at all six RWC 2019 games, above.
And, yes, you heard Rassie right: the only match the Springboks have lost this year was against New Zealand in the Rugby World Cup 2019 pool phase. Although it maybe helps that they didn't play a match between November 2018 and July 2019.
Was Erasmus inspired by another member of the urbane coaches' club?
Herve Renard has always understood what a white shirt can do for the eligible mature gentleman.
The football coach has managed Zambia, Angola, Ivory Coast and Morocco, and inspired a Facebook page called Let's Get Herve's White Shirt to the Museum.
During his tenure in charge of Morocco, he featured on the front page of the Moroccan version of Hello alongside his new belle and sporting a more casual look – a white T-shirt.
Never mind spies at training, Eddie, what about planting a mole in the laundry?