'Pretty innovative': All Blacks boss Scott Robertson weighs in on Boks' new tactics

South Africa hammered the Azzurri 45-0 on Saturday to clinch a 2-0 series triumph despite having Jasper Wiese sent off in the opening period, but much of the post-match debate has centred around Rassie Erasmus' new tactics.

The first significant moment came from the kick-off when Andre Esterhuizen purposefully gathered Manie Libbok's chip from an offside position before it had gone 10 metres, resulting in a scrum to the visitors.

Later in the game, Rassie Erasmus' men set up a maul by lifting a player in the air as they would do at a lineout, ultimately leading to a try.

It has caused controversy in rugby circles, with opinion split over whether it should be legal, and the debate has even reached New Zealand.

While their focus has been on their series with France, Robertson was intrigued by what he saw at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium at the weekend.

The All Blacks boss revealed that when he was at Perpignan as a player, they did something similar to the Boks' kick-off tactic.

"We had a hell of a scrum," he told reporters. "[We] kicked it out on the full, with the forward pack just standing behind the kicker."

He added: "I was just ready to have a scrum. It shows why you're there - you're there to scrum, and that's a big part of our game.

"It's not new, but it shows the intentions, doesn't it? That's the great thing about rugby, you can be innovative, you can use your strengths, and surprise people."

Asked about whether it could be deemed illegal, given that the law states no player must 'intentionally infringe', thus resulting in a penalty, Robertson said: "We have laws, not rules.

"They're pretty clear, yes or no, and that's one of those ones that is up for interpretation, so we'll see what the interpretation comes out like."

No doubt these Springboks tactics will be discussed at the very top and Robertson joked that he was "going to ring World Rugby".

However, the All Blacks head coach was generally positive about South Africa's approach, praising their innovation.

"We're talking about it, that's the good thing," he said. "It's pretty unique, isn't it? We're talking about it, it's great for our game.

"That's the point of difference from every other sport. People have got an opinion on it, World Rugby will look at it, and say play on, or do we change? But it's pretty innovative."

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