JOHANNESBURG – The announcement of a successor to sacked Allister Coetzee as Springboks coach will be made Thursday in Johannesburg, a South African Rugby statement said.
It had been widely anticipated that former Test loose forward Johan "Rassie" Erasmus would be revealed Wednesday as the new coach at a SA Rugby media conference in Johannesburg.
But the function was devoted to the announcement that South African Breweries will sponsor the national men's and women's Sevens teams.
Coetzee was fired this month after winning only 11 of 25 Tests during two seasons in charge of a country that won the Rugby World Cup in 1995 and 2007.
Erasmus quit as director of rugby at Munster late last year after guiding the Irish outfit to the Pro12 final and European Rugby Champions Cup semi-finals.
He previously coached several top-flight South African provinces and fulfilled a number of roles with SA Rugby.
The Springboks season begins on June 2 when they play a one-off Test against Wales in Washington followed immediately by a three-match home series with England.
South Africa were ranked sixth in the world this week behind New Zealand, England, Ireland, Australia and Scotland.