Powerful Springboks coaching setup on horizon?

carzis is the fitness expert at the bulls. its about time saru do the right thing for south african rugby, im excited to see what a coaching team like this can do with the talent we have now...

Yes, apparently the BBC and SARU have settled their dispute over releasing Meyer for coaching the Boks and according to rugbyrugby.com his support team is rumoured to be: Jacques Nienaber Rassie Erasmus John McFarland Basil Carzis Paul Treu I'm familiar with Erasmus, McFarland, Nienaber and Treu but don't know of Carzis. Looks like a very strong and capable coaching team to take the Boks forward.

Yes Keo are now saying Heyneke Meyer is the man. http://www.keo.co.za/2012/01/23/meyer-the-man-to-repair-bok-brand/ I really hope this true, but so far, I have heard a different story every day. We will know in three days, who we stuck with for the next four years.

I actually met and spoke to francois hougaard about p divvy and he told me that P divvy was actually a very good coach. The media made p divvy look like an idiot but he knows his rugby. The springboks outplayed australia in every facet except the scoreboard, was soul destroying to lose that game. I have just read heyneke meyer is busy sorting out the contracts to be the next bok coach.

I didn't know Habana has ended his career

Temba, it would be a shame if SA chose a non-republican to coach the mighty Springboks. To me that would be like the Catholics recruiting a rabbi to be Pope. What's the point? The Springboks are rugby gods. They can't go on the open market looking for a coach.

Don't be so sure Temba. We have Deans after all.

At this point, Id have anyone as coach suzy. Anyone but De Clown.

Sadly the situation is much worse, Green Lantern. Alistair Coetzee, I could live with, he was Jake White’s assistant coach for 2007. However, WP and the Stormers won’t release him, now that Rassie is gone. What I am hearing, is that we are stuck with P Divvy again? Yes, the crazy clown? Hopefully only as a caretaker coach for the English series, which happens halfway thru the Super15. Gert Smal as you say, is intent on serving out his Irish contract, but will be available after six months. How disorganised are these administration idiots within South Africa Rugby? Who really knows what surprise they will spring?

This just in........it seems that Gert Smal is intent to seeing his contract out with Ireland. So next best option should be Allister Coetzee.

Good article Temba, and your right Gary, South Africa does have some very talented backline players. Francious Steyn and Johan Sadie were among the one's named as "x-factor" players in a recent published article by Keo. But unfortunatly, Gert Smal wont have the answer for the Springboks. They need the whole Stormer's coaching staff. Sothat these "x-factor" players can be utilinized to the best of there abilities.

Suzy, insightful assessment of JM. That is his history.

Suzy Poison I'm inclined to go with your assumptions on the direction that SA will take in the coaching department. They seem more feasible than other thoughts on the matter. IMO SA need to revitalize or change their thinking regarding their direction and general focus on forward play rather than other aspects of the game. They have some incredible talented players, they have a plethora of forwards and they always have had but the focus over so many years has been to utilise the forwards to the detriment of the backs. It will be good to see the backend of the old guard (this is said with great respect to their ability) they have been holding the team back in some areas. With the right direction and coaching SA could be the super power in world rugby, I will look with interest to the coaching appointments to see if SA will change to a holistic approach to playing the game instead of the forward dominated ways of the past. Do not for one moment think that I advocate that they should go away from or divert from the dominant forwards that they have but more to the point they should keep with the standard of forwards but place more emphasis on developing their very talented backs to compliment the team as a unit.

Suzy I didn't mention it but agree completely with your assessment of Mitchell's coaching philosophy and style. His resume may look impressive with the teams he's been associated with but his actual coaching record doesn't stack up nearly as well and his departures from the All Blacks and Force has not been without controversy and player unrest. Apart from the All Blacks winning the Bledisloe Cup in 2003 and the Lions winning the Currie Cup last year he hasn't coached any other team to trophies or titles.

You nailed John Mitchell there Suzy (sorry Thelma but she's good). Not sure it lasts as long as 2 years tho. This year will be an acid test for McKenzie to see if he can keep the momentum going.

Great Article TembaVJ. I am hoping for a revolution in Bok play, but I am not holding my breath. South African backline play has stagnated completely, this much was evident in the World Cup Quarterfinal. When with 70% possession, the Boks ran out of any backline attacking ideas, and then blamed the ref for the loss. (I am a Saffa by the way) South Africans tend to be very conservative and I think they once again, they will stick to the tried and tested forward based game. You just have to look at the history of the Highveld game, when you boot the ball 70metres in the thin air. This has been one of the cornerstones of the Bok game and always will be. It’s pity that the Boks can’t seem to learn from the Australian innovation and way of looking at the game. The Wallabies have never had dominating forward packs, so they always treasured possession better and used it more wisely. I too would love to see a foreign coach. Pieter De Villiers was not really the problem, the problem is the Boks were run by the Bulls players Fourie Du Preez and Victor Matfield, and already the Bulls style had proven to be outdated in 2011, in the Super15. The Bok coach get announced in 10 days. However TembaVJ, I think I am hearing different things to you. From what I am hearing neither Rassie nor Heyneke Meyer have even applied for the role. Heyneke is not interested after politics ruled him out last time. Rassie has quit Western Province because of an disagreement with the Amateur body the runs the union, and is looking for work in Europe. There is strong rumour that Rassie may join Nick Mallet and Wayne Smith in the England set up, but that is all hearsay. Wayne Smith and Mallet have definitely been linked to the England job, in the press, but we will only know more in six months time. From what I am hearing, the Bok coach has already been decided, and it is 2011 former Ireland forward’s coach Gert Small. Small was also the Boks forward coach in 2003 and 2007. He has better credentials than Alistair Coetzee, in that he won the Curry Cup twice with Western Province and lead the Stormers to a Semi Final. Coetzee was originally the frontrunner, but opinion swung to Small, is what I am hearing. Small also has a good record with transformation, when he was at Province, he wrote a paper on how to encourage more black participation within the union, which was ignored by the powers that be at the time. I have met John Mitchell, and whilst I really like the bloke, I disagree about what you think of his coaching. I think John is short term kind of coach. He is a come-in-kick-everyone-in-the-pants kind of disciplinarian, which works well in the short term, and it creates a great selfless team, that really lives and dies for each other. However after two or three years, this can get stale, and that’s what happened at the Force. He is not an innovator or a thinker like Ewen McKenzie. Keep up the great articles.

"At the force he rubbed a few prima donnas and princesses the wrong way, and that is why he didn’t do better at the force plus he didn’t have the best squad. Far better coach than Deans, at least ." Hey Johnno, according to many here on the Roar these are the very reasons why Deans hasn't done better with the Wallabies, lack of cattle and not pandering to prima donnas.

Well if he's raised in NZ he might ditch you both and follow a winning team ha ha.

ha ha ha who knows JB, who knows. Still though, it's a great advert for Kiwi coaches - 3 out of the 4 world cup semifinalists being coached by them. I don't think that this will happen again any time soon by any country.