All Blacks coach Steve Hansen is in the firing line of criticism from a South African equal rights rugby group for statements he made in a recently released book.
Hansen has been the subject of an open letter penned by the SARU SACOS Legends, regarding a comment he made in Peter Bills' book The Jersey: The Secrets Behind the World's Most Successful Team.
Hansen was quoted as saying "rugby wasn't a black man's sport" and the Springboks were "the only team in sport that doesn't pick its best team".
The organisation has criticised that statement, claiming Hansen is ill-informed and "reeks of complete ignorance".
"While we do not wish to take anything away from your celebrated successes and greatly admired astuteness as a rugby coach, we do offer a word of caution... where rugby men start to venture on terrain such as pronouncing reasons for other countries' poor performance on a sports field."
Author Bills was granted easy access to the All Blacks for research purposes during the 2017 British and Irish Lions tour.
Hansen's comments were part of a statement in which the All Blacks coach was commenting on the controversial quota system in effect in South African rugby.
"Nelson Mandela understood it better than anyone else," Hansen is quoted as saying in the book.
"He knew that the Springboks was a team that could unite the nation. I still believe it is, if they got things right and allowed it to develop naturally, it would. And you would get the right people in the team.
"In the end, it would be a multi-cultural team. Rugby wasn't a black man's sport, but it was the sport that would unify the country in a way no other sport or business could."
Newshub.
