I know..... I should've written something last week. When, for once, all the bad press came out of NZ: It all started when Sivvi had to be officially reprimanded for "klapping" his wife. Then Ali "I am the greatest" Williams got sent home from SA for having "some rough edges to sort out". I thought that would be it, but no!!! Two (completely unconvincing) bogans from Christchurch (who acknowledged that they had a history of fighting and criminal charges) then claimed they were "violently attacked" by Crusaders players Rua "Golden Gloves" Tipoki, Raleb Calph and Jake "The Muss" Paringatai the night after the Crusaders vs Chiefs game. And to make matters even worse (obviously NOT if you're a Saffa living in Auckland...) the Sharks and Bulls then sent the Blues and Crusaders packing, and in the process secured the first ever all SA final in the super 12/14! (mmmm... no wonder Deirdre was woken by my psychotic screaming, and Daniël's decision to let rip with "Hie' kommie Bokke!!" at 03h05 on a Sunday morning...... SORRY!!)
But....... You can always count on South Africa to do one better, hey!!!! In true "how to completely f*ck up something - South African style!!", I now have to put up with the whole Luke Watson vs Jake White affair again this week, instead of reading about the two best teams in the Super 14 and their preperations for the final. How typical... I am so over it!!!
Thanks to the magic of the internet, I was "fortunate" enough to listen to the John Robbie vs Oregan Hoskins interview on this side of the world. What a complete waste of 8 minutes + 11 seconds..... And no, I don't think it was just Hoskins who came across as a complete tool in that interview!
Straight after that I had to read about "Hoskins and co bringing the game into disrepute" on Keo's website.. This just made me realise (again!!!) that it's not just SARU's fault for the sorry state of affairs, but the media have to take their share of the blame in the circus that is South African rugby. And with that, can I include those of you who just jump on the bandwagon and agree with everything the media conveniently decides to spin, in order to sell more of their newspapers, generate more hits on a website, or to prove to a board of directors they have achieved x amount of listeners this week!!!!
These are the same people, who criticized Jake White during last year's Tri Nations on his team selections. Who fed him to the wolves after a 49-0 defeat against the Wallabies... Who thought it would be best for SA rugby if he was to resign or be relieved from his duties after an appalling Tri Nations campaign and consecutive defeats against Ireland and (a rubbish) England... And, now when SARU interfears, and add a player to the extended training squad, they all jump on the high horse again, and start waving the finger, saying they're surprised Jake hasn't resigned. Talk about double standards!! Last season Luke Watson sold newspapers because he didn't make the squad, this year he's selling them because he did!
I don't care what you think of Luke Watson as a person- Yes, he is arrogant. Yes, he looked like a real to$$er on the cover of SA Sports Illustrated posing as Superman, and also did himself no favours with some of his comments about Jake White in the past. He looks funny with his "toyt pantsh and toyt jersey" on the playing field. He probably doesn't own a copy of Bok van Blerk's cd, he doesn't drive a double cab "bakkie", and he'll struggle to do an aftermatch speech in Afrikaans.. But, can he play rugby? Does he deserve to be in the extended Bok training squad, at the very least?
John Robbie was quick to point out to Hoskins' remark about him being the player of '06, that "that was indeed last year, mr Hoskins, and not this year".. So, how did Luke go in this year's super 14?
According to www.testrugby.com statistics as at 15.05.2007.
(in the following order) Games played, Line breaks, Turn overs, Posession lost, Penalties conceded, Tackles made, Tries scored
L.Watson 13 28 22 6 15 100 5
J.Botes 14 12 7 10 9 133 5
P.Wannenburg 14 12 4 11 5 44 4
W.van Heerden 14 3 18 12 15 100 6
K.Floors 13 17 7 6 4 53 4
C.Grobbelaar 13 8 7 8 4 98 0
E.Joubert 13 16 9 11 14 93 2
S.Burger 13 16 14 17 14 105 0
R.Mccaw 8 12 12 8 13 72 2
M.Holah 12 4 13 5 16 94 1
R.Kankowski 12 24 5 11 5 58 1
Looks like he did ok when compared to his opposition, you experts....
Jacques Botes has had a storming Super 14 campaign, and are indeed one of the unlucky players to have missed out. I can only hope a player of his quality will be rewarded in the not so distant future. The same goes for Bradley Barritt, Derrick Hougaard and Ryan Kankowski. Funny how all the talk is about Watson, but nothing's being said about the inclusion of Eddie Andrews and Tonderai Chavanga, who hasn't even played a single game of super rugby this year. Maybe they just don't sell as many newspapers....
The problem with Watson is personal, end of story. He's not good enough to force his way into the match 22 yet, but he should at the very least be considered for the top 45.... sorry 46 now thanks to SARU.
The media's reaction, by saying they're surprised Jake hasn't resigned yet, is pathetic. Also, SARU's alleged threat that "Jake's head could roll before the World Cup if his selections don't meet their expectations" ... If you believe all of this, I feel sorry for you. SA Rugby didn't fire Jake last year, when they had a valid reason to - in other words when his results warranted action. The reason they decided to stick with Jake, is simple: MONEY! It will cost a heap!!!
I say enjoy this weekend's final if you're Sharks or Bulls fan. You guys deserve it!! But, if the first shambolic week of the Springbok set-up is anything to go by, we might be in for a very long international season.... (sigh..)
