PETER DE Villiers still shows no visible signsof powder burns, a remarkable achievement when considering the incendiary soundbites that have detonated with alarming regularity during his tenure as coach to the South Africa. He’s the molasses when it comes to sticky situations, displaying a lack of sensibility that at times beggars belief.
Some of his more colourful/crass observations have been neatly parcelled under “Devillierisms” on sundry websites, yet he remains, for the most part, unapologetic. It’s difficult to escape the feeling he feels more sinned against than sinning.
His latest verbal escapade saw him embroiled in a controversy that suggested he had sought to replace his two assistant coaches, Dick Muir and Gary Gold, ahead of the Springboks tour of the Northern Hemisphere following a poor showing during this season’s Tri-Nations.
De Villiers did admit he sounded out other coaches but has since met with backs coach Muir and his forwards counterpart, Gold, and considers the matter resolved and closed.
Among those who De Villiers is reputed to have canvassed – he would maintain as consultants rather than replacing the two coaches in situ – include former All Blacks coach John Mitchell, Frans Ludeke (Bulls), Western Province coach Allister Coetzee, as well as Stormers coach Rassie Erasmus and former Leicester coach Heyneke Meyer.
De Villiers admitted: “I did chat to other people but the intention was not to replace Gary and Dick. I was instructed to see who would be available to help us (the Springboks) . . . just as Os (du Randt) has come in.
“It was more for the long-term, looking ahead to the World Cup. We’ve had a couple of meetings in the last few weeks and we’ve got a good relationship. Right now though, we have only Ireland in mind. We’re clear where we want to be. Dick and Gary have done a lot of hard work behind the scenes and we’re looking forward to a successful Ireland match.”
The rumours must have a destabilising effect on the backroom team and come just a short time after De Villiers survived the South African Rugby Union’s review of an international season that saw the Boks win just a single Tri Nations match, having won the tournament the previous season.
They had the worst attacking and defence records in the tournament.
There was speculation a change of coach was imminent, that De Villiers would pay for his verbal gaffes and the team’s poor run and that it could be achieved in time to give the Springboks a reasonable opportunity to prepare a successful defence of their world championship crown in New Zealand next September.
However, the coach survived after what SARU called “an extensive review of the season” in which all aspects of the Springboks’ performances were examined by a specially convened committee.
James Stoffberg, chairman of SARU’s rugby committee, explained: “It was a frank meeting but a positive one. The results of the Springbok team are of paramount importance to our organisation and everyone in the room was committed to providing the team with the best conditions in which to succeed. The committee’s focus was very much on examining areas where we can assist the Springbok team and coach in making sure they arrive at the field in the best possible state of preparation. We reviewed the season to date and have discussed options for assisting the team in those preparations.”
As a pep rally for the national coach it lacked zip, the language employed mired in the banal and carefully expressed. De Villiers alone seemed upbeat:
“It was a very helpful process as we have thoroughly reviewed all our systems. We know there are areas in which we must improve and we will be focusing on those in the remainder of the season.”
He arrives tomorrow without 13 frontline players, presiding over a squad with six new caps and in pursuit of a Grand Slam over the home nations. The end-of-tour match against the Barbarians will seem like a light relief. The time for talk, no matter how outlandish and distracting, is over.
