Rassie Erasmus came out fighting against those people who said he lost his Springbok place because of a drug habit.

The flank's attorney on Tuesday said they are prepared to go to court to clear the player's name after widespread rumours that he was left out of the Springbok squad because he is battling to kick a serious drug habit.

A relaxed Erasmus and his legal representative and agent, Frikkie Erasmus (no relation) appeared on the "Boots and All" rugby programme on M-Net's SuperSport on Tuesday night. The attorney said it was difficult to get to the source of the rumours, but they will institute legal action even if the person(s) is overseas.

The Free State Cheetahs flanker was recently omitted from the Springbok squad by Harry Viljoen, who cited loss of form and a lack of fitness as reason. The Springbok coach also said at a media conference that Erasmus lost a lot of weight and that he wanted the loose-forward to follow a scientific fitness program to get back to his best physical condition.

"In the course of my career there have been so many rumours about so many people in rugby," said Erasmus. "Sometimes it disturbs you and sometimes you just laugh it off.

"I was prepared to do that when these latest stories reached me, but the big problem is when people in the street start talking about it as though it were fact. When it starts affecting one's sponsorship deals then it becomes a little more serious.

"I'm a professional rugby player and over the last four or five years I have been tested numerous times and I've played decent rugby in that time," said the player.

"I've even heard that I was meant to have faked a drug test. Anyone who has had to provide a sample and knows the procedure will tell you that it is almost impossible.

"I will undergo every test that there is to clear my name," Erasmus stated. "For me it was a joke in the beginning but when it starts affecting my family it's really serious."

Erasmus courted controversy this season and his fall-out with then Cats' coach Laurie Mains is well documented. Mains accused Erasmus of suffering from depression, something Erasmus vehemently denied. "I don't have depression," he stated. "I might have had mood swings like all of us have, but depression is not a problem. I'm not on medication."

He also doesn't buy into the story that he lost his Bok place because of weight loss and said it was misconstrued. "I think Harry might have mentioned in passing that I was too light, but I don't think he made an issue of it. The whole thing was blown out of proportion. I've accepted that I was dropped because I didn't play well against France."