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White would be a step backwards for Boks
The Crowd
Roar Guru
8th September, 2010
9
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The Crowd
Roar Guru
8th September, 2010
9

So news is that Jake White says he’s up for grabs to make a return to the helm as Springbok rugby coach. Obviously he is joining the bandwagon of critics who are out to get current coach Peter De Villiers.

How long is De Villiers in his current post? Just on two seasons maybe? A coach doesn’t go from average to good (in terms of results) to bad in the space of a season, without there (possibly) being extenuating circumstances.

Injuries have dealt the Boks a cruel blow, especially as far as fetcher Heinrich Brussouw and Fourie Du Preez, who sparkled last season, are concerned. Then we have the case of Bakkies Botha (surely you can’t blame the coach for on the field indiscipline?) and not to mention the lack of form of some overworked players like Bryan Habana.

The new recruits disrupted the nucleus of the team that had success last year and the season before. And of course, while the new additions did not exactly flop,it could have been predicted that it would not have been plain sailing for the World Champion Boks this year.

Now De Villiers is not the most astute communicator; so maybe it’s time for Saru to tweak the communication lines a bit; they are the ones who employed him? A training course, or some kind of orientation; we don’t know.

White himself was on a five-match losing streak in 2006, before a narrow win over England 25-14 at Twickenham probably saved his bacon. Jake White had his detractors, he had his favourites; he was no perfect coach and probably had many run-ins with management.

In 2005 and 2006 he must have felt the wrath of fans. Yes, he might have won the World Cup, (thanks in the main to a very favourable draw) but decided to bow out while on top, with quite a few dollars to boot. De Villiers at least has the Tri-Nations to show, as well as a series win over the British and Irish Lions – that Jake still can’t append to his CV. Jake White earned his moolah (money) and decided to leave.

So why now talk of a return as if he is the Messiah of Bok rugby? My take is that De Villiers whose coached junior Bok sides to success cannot be that bad a coach everyone is making him out to be. Any coach needs fine-tuning.

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I’m not sure what Jake is doing now, but wasn’t he consultant to the Lions that preformed so poorly last season in the Super 14. Is it fait accompli that White can resurrect an impotent Bok team at the moment? Fact is no! No guarantee.

Another fact is that this is South Africa and once a “person of colour” is at the helm he will never easily appease the Bok masses, who are largely in the main people who believe that the previously much-maligned Bok emblem, is their birthright and nothing else! Hoskins and his executive would be silly indeed if they would revert to White to coach the Boks.

Maybe they’d do some of us a favour, dig in their heels and show these so-called Bok supporters that they are not going to give the man they have given a contract to coach the Boks, the chop just yet!

9
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