ON THE BALL: Anything can still happen, but the Boks are one of the few teams that are shaping up pretty nicely for the World Cup, believes Lucky Maree.
The build-up to the Rugby World Cup in September has so far, to say the least, been stormy.
Very few of the top-tier countries are not in turmoil, and very few of them can claim to be without controversy.
Even France, which has somehow been cruising along, arrogantly thumbing its Gallic nose at the rugby-playing plebs around them, has had to eat some humble pie.
French Rugby Federation President Bernard Laporte, has been caught, not quite with his fingers in the till, but he has been found guilty of swinging a shirt sponsorship contract for the national side to Mohed Altrad, the billionaire owner of Montpellier. Laporte’s suspended sentence may help the French Federation develop a little humility.
Hitting the rugby headlines, is of course, our favourite garden gnome, Eddie Jones. Jones being dumped by England was no surprise. Many say the last nail in his coffin was England’s dismal performance against the Springboks at Twickenham. While some Bok supporters are proud to have helped him on his way, his dismissal certainly caused ripples all the way down to Australia – and to South Africa as well.
Former England scrum coach, South African Matt Proudfoot finds himself at Maties in Stellenbosch. That’s quite a step-down and a long way from England but much closer to home.
Speaking to England’s Daily Mail, Proudfoot accepted responsibility for England’s failure against the Boks, but also confessed that Jones’ sacking affected him so badly that he spent three days in hospital being treated for stress.
Steve Borthwick has taken over as England coach and the poms being who they are, want nothing less than the Webb Ellis Cup in their trophy cabinet come October. Borthwick, who did a great job at Leicester Tigers, is the right guy for the job, but can he perform miracles? “Nah!” say the rest of the rugby world.
Did the Australian rugby bosses fire Dave Rennie because Eddie Jones was walking around looking for a job? It must have made it easier for them. Can Jones turn Australia into a cup-winning team in a few months (or ever)? “Nah!” say the rugby world again.
Does anybody remember that Wayne Pivac was replaced as Wales coach by Warren Gatland? Does it matter? The truth is Wales are not potential cup winners, but with Gatland they’ll do a lot better.
The All Blacks are always a contender for the World Cup. But the New Zealand authorities didn’t have the guts to fire Ian Foster last year when they should have. Scott Robertson made no secret of the fact that he wanted the job. Razor is a man who comes to rugby matches to win and not just to put up a good show. He would have taken the All Blacks to the next level.
Of the top teams, Ireland looks more and more like cup winners with Andy Farrell at the helm. No turmoil there!
So, who have we left out? Why, the Springboks, of course!
Rassie Erasmus and Jacques Nienaber could certainly claim to be “quietly confident” at this stage of the race. Rassie has all but disappeared out of the spotlight. Does it mean he is focusing on the cup?
It is definitely too early to make any predictions, but South Africa really are looking the part, aren’t they? “Yah!” shout the Bok fans.
Pictured above: Are the Boks shaping up to be cup winners?
Image source: SA Rugby
