South African coach Rassie Erasmus admits that he might not be in charge of the Springboks at the 2019 Rugby World Cup.
The 45-year-old and his side have arrived in Wellington off the back of three losses in their last four tests.
After a series-clinching second test win over England in June, South Africa lost the final test a week later. They then swapped wins with the Pumas, before losing a hard-fought contest with the Wallabies last weekend.
Erasmus, who also intriguingly holds the position of Director of Rugby for the union, is aware of the conveyor belt of national coaches in the last 18 years.
Since Nick Mallet left the post in 2000 with a 71 percent winning record, the Springboks have had six coaches in four World Cup cycles.
Erasmus acknowledges the pressure to get results, and freely admits he may not hold the position in 2019 if he can't turn around the current form slump.
However, his main focus is to get the two-time World Champions into a position where they can realistically challenge the All Blacks for glory in Japan.
"If we do really bad, then I probably won't be in this seat for the next couple matches," Erasmus said.
"We are in a stage when we are trying to rectify a few things that have been wrong in the past four or five years.
"It's about building a different mindset. It's not just about looking ahead to the next test match, it's about the future of South African rugby, which is winning World Cups and becoming one, two or three in the world."
Despite the obvious conflict of interests in being in a position where he is his own boss, the former South African international is confident he will do right by Springbok rugby.
Erasmus said he will have no trouble recognising if he isn't doing a good job.
"If I'm not doing well as a head coach then I'm not doing well as the Director of Rugby," he said.
"I'm under no illusions - we have lost two in a row, so the pressure is on this week and the more we lose the more ruthless the South African supporters will become.
"I'm not going to let the pressure get to me - it's all about building that team that is ready to compete at the World Cup."
The measuring stick for South Africa is how they compete with the All Blacks on Saturday night.
There were two very different test matches with New Zealand in 2017, with New Zealand blitzing the Boks 57-0 on the North Shore before South Africa got within one point in Durban a few weeks later in a pulsating contest.
Erasmus said the former result is the one that hurts the most, noting that despite not being involved with the side at that point, it hit him very hard.
"Without a doubt we remember the 57-0. It's something that hurts - a massive record tally loss to the All Blacks and everyone is still talking about it.
"It was embarrassing as a South African."
Erasmus doesn't envision a similar scoreline in Wellington, but acknowledges the All Blacks are the superior side.
However, given the low expectations of most rugby pundits on the Springboks' ability to provide a true test for Steve Hansen's side, Erasmus said it makes the preparation easier than if they were being talked up by the press.
"Coming to New Zealand where no one is giving you a chance and expect you to get smashed by 50-odd points, then that is actually an opportunity to build confidence and build on what we have.
"I didn't think in any of the other games we were totally outplayed. In all of those games, we created enough chances to win - but this is the ultimate test to see where we are.
"Did we improve these last six matches or have we gotten worse? That's the question we will answer.
"If we can beat the All Blacks here then everyone back home will believe we have a great chance of winning the World Cup next year.
"If we run them close then that will be a sign of growth within the playing group. I want to see growth, and I want us to be in contention next year in Japan."
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