Who is new Springboks coach Allister Coetzee?

New Springboks coach Allister Coetzee. Photo / Getty

Allister Coetzee was named as the new Springboks coach overnight, replacing Heyneke Meyer.

What do we know about the new coach of the All Blacks' biggest rival?

* An Eastern Province player who was a Junior Springbok halfback in the early 1990s, and captained the team representing the non-racial SARU before that. Played for Eastern Province in the 1994 Super 10.

* The former teacher - both his parents were teachers - has been involved with coaching since he retired as a player. He was assistant coach to Jake White including when the Springboks won the World Cup in 2007. He also assisted Springboks coach Harry Viljoen in 2000.

* His father Phillip was said to be a brilliant flyhalf good enough for Springbok consideration, but for playing in the apartheid era. He died in a car accident.

* One South African Sunday Times profile says he grew up " at the social crossroads separating the affluence of nearby Kingswood College private school and the poverty of Grahamstown's northern townships". ? He held a number of assistant roles before becoming the Stormers head coach from 2010 - 2015 gaining some significant success early on with teams based around strong defence. The Stormers lost the 2010 final to the Bulls, and made the semifinals in the next two seasons. They topped the South African conference three out of five times under coetzee.

* Became South Africa's first provincial coach of colour in 2001, when he took charge of Easter Province Mighty Elephants in the Currie Cup. Over a decade late he led Western Province to two Currie Cup titles.

* Left the Stormers to coach Kobe Steel in Japan but made it clear that Springboks coach was his dream job.

* He is the 13th Springboks coach since they were readmitted to world rugby in 1992, and the second coach of colour after Peter de Villiers. Coetzee is regarded as the most committed and successful Super rugby coach in terms of meeting the transformation goals of getting more players of colour into top teams.