A lot has been said over the inclusion of Ruan Pienaar over close friend Morne Steyn. Some believe that Morne should be in the starting XV because of his consistent Super 14 and his superior goal kicking. Ruan himself could cover scrumhalf from the bench and has proved himself a far superior player then Ricky January but that won’t happen as we all know Snor has a thing for Ricky.

I will concede that Morne is far more superior then Ruan with his goal kicking. His kicking reminds one of Naas in his prime, Monty in the latter stage of his career. Ruan however is a far more superior player when it comes to attacking the opposition. If you look closely at the game, you will see that the Boks enjoyed the majority of possession, and their attack found gaps and space where there was none. In the second half however they gave the AB’s the idea that they were in the game.

So why can’t they focus more on the kicking game of Ruan? Why can’t Monty or even Vlokkie spend more time with him and give him that extra boost that will make him a even better player. This is the dillema we facing after the coach made it clear where he wanted certain players to play. Once again Fransie Steyn had a good game, consistent, good under the high ball and attacking. In short all we need to do is properly develop Ruan’s kicking game, and the rest will fall into place. Where would that leave Morne? Well either on the bench or at inside centre….you be the judge. I just feel that he is not quite ready for that major role, and you can see it in his body language. Even Wynand Olivier, in the Super 14 was probably the best inside centre in the tournament but in National colours he has not quite proved himself a worthy replacement for Jean De Villiers. Some people don’t understand why PDV rather plays Morne from the bench. Play him into the position slowly and develop him, but that still leaves me with a question, where does Ruan fit in?

I am amazed by Boland Cavaliers. How they manage to stay in topflight rugby all these years is a mystery, but I guess they use that experience against other smaller unions. They only seem to give the Western Province a good game of the bigger unions, since they play a fierce local derby. What makes me sad about this club is the fact that they don’t even have a sponsor. I mean come on really now, we are the World Champions in both formats of the game, Super 14 Champions and one proud nation. We are hosting the Soccer WC next year and seem to be the centre of attraction but why can’t a company come forward and say, “Hey we want to sponsor the Boland Cavaliers?”

I understand that a sponsor wants a team to win constantly and they want their brand well promoted by a highly sucessful team but the Cavaliers, although not the most popular team on the roster has produced some good contesting rugby over the years and still remain in the topflight. Surely just being in the Currie Cup gives your brand enough exposure. It’s actually a shame because the Boland Stadium, although not the most flashly and spectacular, is set around beautiful scenary and brings together the heart of the Boland winelands. They have produced some good players over the years. Stefan Terreblanche started his provincial career with them and still holds the record for most tries scored in one single season with 20. Dale Santon was a pioneer for the club and played most of his career there. Ashwin Willemse started out here and became a former Sa Player of the year and World Cup winning winger for the Springboks.

In the professional era you can’t blame a player for seeking greener pastures and in this case especially players that gets attention from bigger unions. You have to feel for the youngsters in this side and have to wonder whether they will keep on being the ones, bigger unions can destroy on the field. They do however have a fighting spirit second to none and are a well run side despite being overworked and underpaid. So this is to any corporate head, sitting on a heap of money, that has nothing to do with it. Invest in that team because they deserve much more. Everyone is ranting on about the Eastern Province and even they have a sponsorship while they play in the First Division. Irony is a funny thing….

The Tri Nations are upon us. Many have given their opinion on who will be the winners. Personally I think that the Boks stand a good chance. It requires us to firstly win all our home games, something that should be easy but we know that when the Wallabies or AB’s turn up we tend to lose a couple here and there.

REM was thinking the other day. Why is it that we find it difficult to win away? Why did we only record our first win in the House of Pain last year only? It comes to two conclusions: One we are not a good touring side (to the South specifically) and Two the home sides play extra well when they play home. Now we always seem to win a few here and lose a few there but why is it that we lose games that we could have the upper hand? If you look at the Bulls and their home advantage, teams in the Super 14 and Currie Cup find it hard to win there. Shouldn’t all our staduims become fortresses when visitors arive, make it known to them that they don’t stand a chance, intimidate them, bully them if you have to but don’t let them win!!

Have a look and say what you think about it. Should we just accept that Australia is favourites? How bout just whipping their behinds and winning the premiere Southern Hemisphere competition.

This post is long overdue and for that I appologize. There has been some negative press in the past couple of weeks regarding the suspension of Bakkies Botha. From a rugby knowing point of view, I would say that the ban was a tad harsh and puts the games rules under scrutiny.

During the Super 14, South Africa had bragging rights. Not because a SA team won the competition, but the fact that we could boast strong squads(Bulls and Sharks) especially when there were critical injuries. When the Bok squad was announced a outcry went out to PDV for the inclusion of certain individuals. This showed that on paper he selected a great squad but left out great players which in turn showed the amount of depth SA Rugby had to their disposal. Any coach in rugby will tell you that this is a blessing and any player could step up to the plate if one was injured or suspended. Now Bakkies was sorely missed this past weekend and you could see from the body language of some Boks that their mind was more focused on just playing as individuals. Surely we can brag about having the most depth in World Rugby but if we miss one player and fall apart so easily how does that effect our future?

A few weeks ago one PDV said in a press interview that a team is built around Schalk Burger. Surely now his words must be pulled back as Heinrich Brussouw showed his potential and has the attributes to play in this squad. Yes Bakkies is a monster, a physical presence like no other but what if he gets injured? Are you telling me that he is the only one in South Africa that can play the role of enforcer so effictively? Just shows how we contradict ourselves when it comes to statements made. What ever is wrong with Johan Muller? I see a leader, world class Second Rower and a physical figure, not the same as Botha but the same game style. What if Jean, Fourie, Pierre and Bryan are injured at the same time? Will the team hold up with the reserves bought in or would they crumble? Yes a wealth of experience will be lost but you have capable replacements who have played in the ranks. Wynand, Ruan, Ryan and Odwa can be worthy replacements and should fit into the squad real nicely.

With regards to the Trinations, I don’t see PDV making any changes to the squad that played the Lions. I hope that the of field politics will be halted and stopped, and a thought to the Tri Nations given considering that we are long overdue for a win. The Australians look like the most consistent side this year with thrashing wins in the first Internationals of the year over the French and Italians. I hope that we get it right this time.

Till next time

The following extract is from a popular Capetonian tabliod, The Voice. The post is written by one Dickie September and is a weekly post by this sport writer:

Peter de Villiers is a living contradiction. And no, Dickie is not talking about the way the outpoken Springbok coach bungles through a press conference. No. Dickie is talking about the very day De Villiers was appointed as the man in charge of the South African national rugby team. With transformation high on the agenda, Saru made the call and stepped into a brave new world by placing the first man of colour in charge of our beloved Boks. The decision itself was a contradiction, something that didn’t seem right. But later Dickie got over his own hang-ups and got used to theidea of a couloured ou coaching the Bokke. Then Saru president Oregan Hoskins came out and said what Dickie had feared-and the rest of South Afirca was thinking-De Villiers is not there for rugby reasons alone.

That statement, as they say, flipped the script. Instead of De Villiers’ appointment being a triumphant “Yes we can” moment, it became just another affirmative action appointment. With these words, Saru washed their hands of Peter and made him fair game for the critics, the nay-sayers and the hypocrites. Those people who raged against transformation saw a manwho was the right colour and not right for the job. But De Villiers proved them wrong at every turn. The coach got stuck in and went to work to transform the Bok setup not only with fresh faces of colour but with his won brand of rugby, notching up a winning percentage of 73. De Villiers introduced a more expansive game, which saw the Boks beat the All Blacks in New Zealand for the first time in 10 years. He masterminded the Boks’ record win over the Poms at Twickenham. And he has just led the Boks to a series win over the Lions with a game to spare.

Despite that, people have gone to great lengths to undermine him. They invented a sex tape scandal, questioned his decision-making, labelled him the “weakest link in the Bok set-up” and moaned that he is incoherent and rude to the press. De Villiers’ track record speaks for itself so Dickie doesn’t give a sh!t about what comes out of the man’s mouth. So guess what Saru and the haters, he IS a “God-given talent” and you ARE stuck with a winner. Now get used to it.

Some strong words from Cape Town. You be the judge of that!

Enjoy the weekend

Is Real Madrid really the real deal? I mean they are buying players and forking out big bucs for them. Ronaldo, Kaka and Benzima together cost them 180 Million Euros. I mean that is enough to finance a big team like Manchester for the next season or maybe two! And apparently they are not done yet…

Me being a rugby blogger post soccer so now and then. Now I have always admired the way Madrid plays, eventhough I support the lads from Manchester they are always a big threat and now they are going towards a trend, seen more then 10 years ago. Florentino Perez, the then President of Real Madrid wanted to start his presidential campaign on a high. He wanted to show the world why Real Madrid is a big threat and he wanted WORLD DOMINATION!!

In the 1980’s the club had one of the best teams in Spain and Europe(known as La Quinta del Buitre), winning two Uefa cups, five Spanish championships in a row, one Spanish cup and three Spanish super cups. Under the care of Perez, Madrid sold a part of their training grounds to 4 corporations, wiping their debts and paving the way with buying some of the biggest names in world football. Players like Zidane, Beckham, Figo and Ronaldo where hot property at the time and signed for the Spanish Giants. Though Pérez’s policy resulted in increased financial success based on the exploitation of the club’s high marketing potential around the world, especially in Asia, it came under increasing criticism for being focused too much on marketing the Real Madrid brand and not enough on the performances of the team.

Now I must say that I am a huge fan of Sir Alex. The 80Million Euros he will receive is being used very thoughtfully. Wigan winger Valencia has already been signed and eventhough United lost Benzima to Madrid, a possible ploy for David Villa and Fabiano still exist. I will however concede that despite Sir Alex being the most successful coach in English history, I will say that for the best president of a club, Florentino Perez is a well placed first. Firstly taking a hugely successful club, wiping their debts and making them profitable is a very good achievement. The purchasing of the next wave of “Galactico’s” however is far fetching as the first lot’s careers diminished once they signed. So all of the best for the rest, you will need it.

PS: Galactico’s are chosen on popularity and not on form so they better beware!!