I think we found the cause of the rot!

2009-07-04T15:10:00.000-07:00

What a disgrace!!! The manor in which the 'loser' Springboks behaved after their victory today was an embarrassment. They celebrated like they had just won the World Cup...when in fact we had just been utterly humiliated. We were completely outplayed and were made to look ordinary by what is honestly a very ordinary Lions team.

Who's fault is this? Well that is very easily answered...PETER DE VILLIERS!!!

There is no way that any Springbok supporter can tell me that Jake White would have ever let his Springbok team behave the way today's Springbok team did. In 2003 we became the laughing stock of international rugby...the Springboks didn't know how to win a match and would resort to off the ball tactics...TODAY was a shameful return to the disgraceful tactics which destroyed the Springboks reputation and respect of the rugby community.

Jake White must have been fuming in his living room whilst watching the team which represents his legacy resort to such tactics of a 'loser' team. Remembering that this is the "unofficial" best team in the world.

We were a disgrace to say the least. This Lions team is NOT A GOOD team!!!! We made them look exceptional. Yes, at the end of the day we won the series...but the Lions are the team who are heading home with their heads held high. They outscored the Springboks 74 - 63 in the 3 tests...how embarrassing!

There was a lot of reference made to this being a dead-rubber and therefore we were not as committed to the game as we would have been. A DEAD RUBBER against the British and Irish Lions!! Are you serious? There is no such thing as a dead rubber against a Lions team...the only dead rubber in world rugby is the third-place playoff at the World Cup. This was a Springbok team who had the chance to break records...we've just thrown away our chance of being the first team in 100 something years to beat the Lions 3-0. We have also thrown away our Springbok record of not having lost at Ellis Park (Coca-Cola Park!) since 2001. And finally we have thrown away our chance of attempting to break the long standing record of 18 consecutive international victories (we were on 7), and this team is strong enough to have broken that record.

So here we are...about to embark on another Tri-Nations and we are looking as disorganised and directionless as ever. Surely, if this team comes last again this year we need to immediately get rid of Peter De Villiers. Does he really just get to keep on making a mockery of South African rugby because of his colour? It was rather humourous to see that the one person coming to his defence is non other than Rudolf Strauli, the man who turned the Springboks into a disgraceful bunch of mediocre hooligans. And after all the hard work put into this current Bok team over the past 4 years, we are heading straight back into medocracy...but this time it is even worse because we have the most talented players in the world currently available to us!

One final note...it has been another week of embarrassment for the Boks as it was announced that the IRB are going to fine the Springboks for having publicly protested against Bakkies Botha's ban. I completely agree that it was a disgusting sighting and that Bakkies was completely victomised by the Sighting Commission...but we needed to rise above this and needed to head out out on Saturday and perform to our best to show that once again we would rise above the injustice of Springboks rugby players being unfairly sactioned by the IRB.

Any coach who had any level of control over his players would have enforced that we did not take this issue any further. But Peter De Villiers went the complete opposite route, he participated in wearing an arm band at Coca Cola Park...Brilliant Peter!!!

It sucks being a Springbok supporter

2009-06-28T09:16:00.000-07:00

If only we were able to select our best team without the interference of the quota system...its been said SO many times before and has effected Springbok rugby for many many years now, but WOW this Springbok team could be the best team in world rugby were it not for the quota system!

I am a huge fan of Beast, JP and Brian...and I would select them in my starting line up every weekend. But to persist with a player such as A.D. Jacobs is becoming criminal. Jacobs is at best an impact player...bring him on in the final 20 mins of a game to inject a bit of flare (if the game requires us to score points). But to leave the best outside centre in the country on the bench (if not the best in the world) is becoming inexcusable. And then to bring him on in place Jean De Villiers! Does Peter De Villiers really think that the South African public is that stupid?

As for Ricky Januarie's selection...the man was dropped by the Stormers...he was not injured. His form has been shocking to say the least. He is slow to the breakdown and his passing has become a liability...he has obviously spent the past year practicing his kicking game and forgetting about the fundamental objective of a scrumhalf, which is to get your flyhalf quick clean ball.

As much as I celebrated his try in Dunedin last year, I also grimaced because I realised that this was going to buy him another year in a Springbok jersey. Can you believe that the there was actually mention of him being the number one scrumhalf in the country...De Villiers made a comment about form being temporary but class being permanent...if anything he should have been talking about Fourie Du Preez...Ricky Januarie had one very lucky bounce of the ball. That is not class, that is a moment of luck.

And I'm not only speaking about the selections of the Springboks on the field. Our coaches (I include Dick Muir and Gary Gold) have been found out in this series. There complete incompetence has been somewhat astounding. Their only saving grace is that they are coaching the best team in the world, and as poorly as this team has been coached, the individual talent of this team is too strong to lose to the 2009 Lions team.

Schalk Burger has been the biggest disappointment of this series. Not because he did not play well, but purely because he let down his fans by resorting to eye gouging...something a player of his class does not need to be involved in. I think Schalk is a tremendous player and all the talk about him not having had a good Super 14 is absolute BS...the guys stats for the season were great...he out-tackled every opposing no.6 throughout the tournament. But playing around such a weak tight 5 meant that he had to play a lot tighter. I can promise every Stormer supporter that if Schalk had played as a typical open side flanker, we would have been looking at a far worse points difference at the end of the season. But as much as I am a great fan of his, I am furious at his lack of discipline...he resorted to tactics which you would expect from Bismark or Bakkies.

Funnily enough, I have always felt that Schalk can play blind-side flank and be almost just as effective as he is when he plays open side. And the lose forward combination which ended off should be the Springboks future trio. I do believe that Juan Smith is a tremendous player, but I feel that Schalk should get the jersey ahead of Juan. Brussouw has proven that there is a need for a fetcher in the starting line up (this contradicts my opinion before the Lions series where I felt that if the Springboks keep to there traditional game plan then we didn't need a specialist fetcher!).

So another feather in De Villiers's very flimsy hat...and yes, I believe it is another extremely undeserving feather.

Thank goodness the All Blacks are looking so rusty! But we need to be weary of the Wallabies, and I honestly didn't think I would ever be saying that again...

Little Bill's Big Ideas

I think we found the cause of the rot!

It sucks being a Springbok supporter