Keo.co.za tour diary – Week 3
5 Sep 2010
Bees-gate, hunting, and the Australians’ performances in the local hot spots of Bloem.
Another week, and another Peter de Villiers controversy. It would be tiring if it weren’t so entertaining watching him bury himself and further tarnish what is already a tainted reputation. Those comments about the Boks backing Bees Roux 100% rightfully received most of the attention in the media, but his admission that he selected his side according to perceived public sentiment also raised some eyebrows.
This from the coach who said he wouldn’t listen to public opinion in calling up new players to the squad. De Villiers said he selected over-played individuals to give the Bloemfontein public value for money, but the crowd showed what they thought of that decision when Bryan Habana, and a few other Boks, were embarrassingly booed inside the first 30 minutes. One vocal supporter (double Brandy & Coke in hand, obviously) even shouted to the press, tell Saru I’m going to sue them over Habana. I’m still not sure how that would work, but his point was taken.
Needless to say after Monday’s self-inflicted drama-filled day for De Villiers, before Tuesday’s press conference, his response was to mutter under his breath about some of the members of the press (those that he probably classifies in the ‘against us’ category). You stay classy, P Divvy.
While the Australians were shark-cage diving off the Durban coast on their day off, some of the Boks went hunting on one of Bloem’s nearby farms. Morne Steyn proved the most successful and transferred his kicking accuracy to the hunting, shooting a buck in the head.
From Thursday our moods were perking up as we realised there were no more De Villiers pressers. The way assistant coaches Gary Gold and Dick Muir – who were rolled out for the first time this year in response to an SA Rugby magazine article that stated how much influence they have in the squad – provided honest, rugby answers was refreshing.
Cardinelli and I decided to celebrate that evening with a visit to the famed Barbas on Bloem’s Second Avenue. The fact that there aren’t many other options to go out to in Bloem didn’t get us down, and I responded by claiming the Barbas hat-trick of three nights in a row. JC is getting old before his time so he missed out on the weekend’s happenings, but Gavin Rich was back in town by Saturday after his Durban sojourn to follow the Aussies.
JC and I had forgotten there was a post match presser with PdV, and again it wasn’t surprising to hear him blame a refereeing decision late in the game as the reason for the defeat. Delusional.
After their promising performance on the pitch in Bloem, Rich and I were interested spectators in the way the Australians also out-played the Boks on their night out, with Quade Cooper, James O’Connor and Anthony Fainga’a especially popular with the ladies. The trio had two to three girls on their arm throughout the night, and you could see in the eyes of the young ladies they saw this as their ticket out of Bloem.
Personally, my favourite moment of the week came when Griquas scrumhalf Sarel Pretorius was asked by a fan whether he thinks he’s better than Ricky Januarie. Pretorius’ simple response: he smiled broadly and just rubbed his stomach. Classic.
Bloem has its detractors, but I’m not one of them. The City of Rose in Spring, there’s nothing like it.
By Grant Ball, in Bloemfontein
Follow SA Rugby mag on Twitter
30 Comments
5 Sep 2010, 15:54 pm
ja
damn its been a dissapointing season so far
5 Sep 2010, 16:24 pm
And it could get worse…im dying to see his EOYT squad….R100 it has Earl Rose in it
5 Sep 2010, 16:32 pm
oh…Hunting Dragons
5 Sep 2010, 17:48 pm
@grant10(grant10)-1: What makes everything 10x worse is the successes of last year in contrast to the sequel-ready horror movie we’ve been forced to watch over the last few months. Whatever the say from now on, John Smit and Krusty aint tellin’ me ****. Only a Grand Slam will improve my mood from “Livid” to “Pissed”. I hope the right people pile the garbage on the guilty parties incessantly until there is change.
5 Sep 2010, 17:56 pm
@BishopsOD(BishopsOD)-4: seems that the more the losses mount the more plod and the stooges simply make the laager even more closed.
It seems we going to have to make do with this lot till end of wc 2011…..
Man management now going to be paramount…..
5 Sep 2010, 18:13 pm
Personally, my favourite moment of the week came when Griquas scrumhalf Sarel Pretorius was asked by a fan whether he thinks he’s better than Ricky Januarie. Pretorius’ simple response: he smiled broadly and just rubbed his stomach. Classic.
Maybe Sarel ate a dodgy boerrie..
5 Sep 2010, 18:17 pm
Going to be a balancing act on the eoyt divvy apparently wants to rest 13 players.
Although the boks seem to have a contractual obligation to play their best 15 in two of the games.
5 Sep 2010, 18:24 pm
brilliant arcticle on rugby heaven by will greenwood….very interesting read for those interested.
5 Sep 2010, 18:33 pm
As a South African rugby supporter I’m embarrassed of the whinging and always blaming anything but the coaches and players. Once again it is a poor referring decision. What a jack – a s s!
We lost because we can’t play descent rugby for 80 minutes. We lost because our combinations chosen are wrong combinations. We lost because we picked the out of form players week in and week out. To think that PdV and co think us rugby supporters are stupid – goes to show the respect he shows us who contribute to his and the players salaries. Time for big change or we are doomed…
5 Sep 2010, 18:35 pm
@grant10(grant10)-8: Excellent article. Thanks.
5 Sep 2010, 18:38 pm
We lost because we can’t play descent rugby for 80 minutes.
Always a problem at altitude…
5 Sep 2010, 18:41 pm
@Bill Reyts(Gumboots)-9: Yeah I saw him blaming the ref, what an arsshole.
5 Sep 2010, 18:45 pm
Sofa Joe
In other words rugby lite..
Sounds too much like league to me.
5 Sep 2010, 18:50 pm
@gunther(gunther)-13: Shunts. It does give me pause too actually, as it did Will Greenwood.
But League has no rucks & mauls either, which is THE big difference in playing 38 minutes of continual movement.
5 Sep 2010, 19:13 pm
@grant10(grant10)-5: That laager mentality seems a bit like “we own the team to me”. It will be sad to see some in the Bok setup being hounded out of it. Legends who led us to the Promised Lands being kicked out. I’m interested to see how the provincial team managements will deal with situations where someone is living on borrowed in a team when there is an obvious solution waiting for his opportunity. Some of our Boks had better stay away from the papers in the foreseeable future.
5 Sep 2010, 19:24 pm
Soda
38 minutes of continual movement…
Sounds like one of Ron Jeremy’s efforts to me.
Personally I have no wish to marginalise scrums and lineouts.
Neither does grantie if his preoccupation with scrums is anything to go by
5 Sep 2010, 20:06 pm
goodness! It’s fitting that i didn’t watch this game, it would’ve spoilt my rural transkei experience! Oh well, i see pdv was pacing like a caged lion in that coach’s box!
anyway, pdv is not the 1st saffa coach to blame a ref after a belting by the australians…49-0
5 Sep 2010, 21:40 pm
To maximise home advantage, SARU arranged all three home tests to be at altitude this year but the Boks lost two of them.
Maybe that altitude was actually more of a hindrance than a help to the Boks?
5 Sep 2010, 21:59 pm
@TheTackler(TheTackler)-18: SARU does not arrange, you are giving them way too much credit
To do something like that implies actual thinking, we are talking about SARU here after all
5 Sep 2010, 22:24 pm
@grant10(grant10)-8: It’s a kak article. We’ve been through all this before. Last time they were called the ELVs. Storm in a tea cup.
5 Sep 2010, 23:15 pm
To top it all off, the Boks are now 3rd – behind the Wallabies
6 Sep 2010, 00:28 am
@kaksioek(kaksioek)-21: And they’ll “rest” their old men and send the greenhorns away on the EOYT, where last year — and with their top A team — they lost 4 out of 5 because they were “too tired”.
They might lost 4 out of 4 on that grand slam. Then they’ll sink to about 8th. In the same category as Italy and Fiji.
6 Sep 2010, 01:40 am
If the boks lose in the EOYT tour then I will be lost for words. Was White ever this bad?
6 Sep 2010, 04:15 am
@Kiwisamoan(Kiwisamoan)-23: They lost 4 out of 5 on the EOYT last year, with their A-team fresh off a 3N triumph.
This time they’re going to be even more tired, and a year older.
Or else they’re sending their inexperienced, green B-team.
It’s looking perilous.
6 Sep 2010, 07:14 am
@girshin(girshin)-2: Honestly? I think Earl could run the ball better than Moermy Steyn. Although we would have to carry a brick wall around and make sure it stays just behind him all the time, to expect any defence in that channel.
Moermy has no semblance of twinkle toes or skills or stepping or acceleration AT ALL comapred to the best of Oz or NZ. We need a running flyhalf, and we need one badly. He NUST go to a sprinting coach to get some speed into his running game. He offers no threat at all in than channel.
6 Sep 2010, 08:54 am
@gunther(gunther)-7: Thats great news regarding the resting of 13 Boks. Playing the best 15?? Isnt that the coach that decides? Thats quite a stupid policy. @Kiwisamoan(Kiwisamoan)-23: Yes 49-0.
6 Sep 2010, 14:34 pm
Hey Tackler! Tell us again! How does the Kiwi’s form compare to that of 2006?
7 Sep 2010, 02:18 am
@Bouts(Bouts)-27: When planning a campaign for tomorrow, there’s little point in looking back at yesterday.
Look at where you are right now, and focus on where you have to be tomorrow. Then plan your route between these two points.
Where you were yesterday doesn’t matter.
7 Sep 2010, 02:26 am
@TheTackler(TheTackler)-24: out of interest tackles, which players out of the Bok player pool do you actually rate?
7 Sep 2010, 04:29 am
Frans Steyn at fullback, for his 65m boot. De Jongh at centre from his devastating 5m-in-a-heartbeat side-step.
Have your say
You must be logged in to post a comment.