Tony Brown has confirmed that there is no clause in his contract with South Africa that says he can quit to link up with New Zealand and expressed surprise at the sacking of Scott Robertson as All Blacks coach.

Brown has been instrumental in improving the attacking game of the Springboks since being appointed assistant coach to Rassie Erasmus in 2024, and is a popular and valued member of their technical team.

Since Roberton was axed there has been speculation that New Zealand might make a play to bring former All Black Brown home, especially if his long-time collaborator Jamie Joseph is given the head coach position.

Erasmus poured cold water on that suggestion last week and Brown told The Post there has been no move for his services, and that his contract with South African Rugby is watertight.

“I’m obviously contracted. I don’t have an ‘out’ of my contract, so I’m back in South Africa (until the 2027 World Cup),” Brown said. “Everything’s just speculation. I’m not even sure what New Zealand Rugby’s plans are. No one’s really heard anything.”

Brown admits surprise at Robertson’s sacking, suggesting the coaching group of the Springboks were shocked too.

“I didn’t think they would do that, especially with no one waiting to take over,” Brown said. “(It’s) definitely not going to be easy for them, especially without a CEO and a high-performance manager. There are a lot of things they need to sort out pretty quickly.

“All the (Springbok) coaches have been chatting on group chats, and everyone’s pretty surprised and amazed by what’s been happening.”