Ken Borland

The Sharks are hoping that all their excellent programmes to assist their players with life outside rugby will clinch the deal with Eben Etzebeth, leading to the Springbok powerhouse lock joining them after the end of Toulon’s season in June.

The Sharks, thanks to their equity partners, offer enormous networking and advisory possibilities with an array of leading businesspeople and that could be of interest to Etzebeth, who has been one of the best-paid players in France and is now in the second half of his career.

Eduard Coetzee, the CEO of the Sharks, confirmed on Tuesday that the franchise are putting together an offer for arguably the best lock in the world, who was earning about R20 million a year at Toulon.

“We are speaking to Eben, he wants to come back and we will put our best foot forward,” Coetzee told The Citizen. “It’s about what we can offer him on and off the field.

“Eben will be turning 31 in October and we can give him a start for life after rugby. We can match him up with businesspeople who can help him – in the pharmaceutical world, clothing, property etc.

“Hopefully that can make up for the loss of income he will have coming back to South Africa. And with the endorsements and commercial opportunities he can get here, hopefully he can earn something that is not a long ways off what he gets there in France. So we feel there is definitely a chance that we will get him,” Coetzee said.

The salary cap (R65m) that SA Rugby have imposed on their franchises as they try to compete with the big-spending European clubs is a frustration, and the Sharks also have to ensure they do not anger the existing superstars in their squad by paying the likes of Etzebeth considerably more than they are earning.

“Of a probable current World XV, we have Siya Kolisi, Makazole Mapimpi and Lukhanyo Am, and now you add Eben Etzebeth,” Coetzee said. “And you can’t pay one of them twice as much as the others.

“You need a level of consistency in terms of what you are paying the top guys. Fortunately we have some credit still in the salary cap and Eben has got himself out of his contract with Toulon.”

The CEO also cleared up any impression that Neil Powell being parachuted in as director of rugby when he had initially been signed as defence coach would be cause for any anger by head coach Sean Everitt.

“John McFarland left for a long-term deal and Warren Whiteley stepped in as defence coach until Neil arrives in September, and he is doing really well. We felt the gap was in terms of managing the entire rugby programme.

“It has been a consultative process and Sean has a very difficult job managing two teams out of one squad. But Neil runs systems really well and he is very strong on culture and work ethic.

“So Neil will run everything outside of the day-to-day coaching. This will cause the least disruption and his strength is people-management, we need someone to run the whole system from juniors up the pipeline,” Coetzee said.

Captain Siya Kolisi and talismanic lock Eben Etzebeth are the players to whom the saying ‘no rest for the wicked’ might be applied as they have been tasked with fronting up again for the Springboks in the opening Rugby Championship Test against Argentina at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium on Saturday.

They are the only players who started all three of the brutal Tests against the British and Irish Lions who are not getting a breather this weekend, and it is a credit to their superb, wickedly good, conditioning and mental strength that they are ready to go again on Saturday.

When coach Jacques Nienaber announced the team on Tuesday, he made it clear that the 10 changes made to the starting XV, and two more on the bench, were due to the need to rotate players in order to give them sufficient rest and game-time.

“We mean zero disrespect to Argentina, but our challenge is we have five big Tests on the trot, on successive weekends, and we have to look at player welfare more than anything else. Our first goal is always to win, but secondly we want to create squad depth. A lot of various things go into deciding who to rotate, and the guys not playing are not resting, they still play a massive role in preparation,” Nienaber said.

So why are Kolisi and Etzebeth, a duo who put their bodies on the line more than most against the Lions, still playing?

“Winning is what is required at the moment and if guys are physically and mentally ready to play then they will play. We also want to ensure continuity of leadership, we didn’t want to upset the applecart by taking too many leaders out. We look at player welfare wherever we can, but if a player is able to play six or seven Tests on the trot then we will choose him,” Nienaber explained.

The Springbok management have ensured that wherever they have brought in fresh faces, they have experienced back-up close by. A new-look front row of Ox Nche, debutant Jospeh Dweba and Wilco Louw has the bomb squad front row of Trevor Nyakane, Malcolm Marx and Vincent Koch standing by on the bench; Etzebeth and Lood de Jager are a seasoned lock pairing and a new-look backline will be guided by wise old heads in Elton Jantjies, Francois Steyn and Jesse Kriel.

“The starting front row has not played for a while and it is Joseph’s first Test and Wilco was with us in 2018 so he’s a new old guy coming back. But there’s lots of consistency in the second row and the front row that will come off the bench. And it’s a new backline but a guy like Jesse with 47 caps will take over as defence captain from Lukhanyo Am, not to mention Frans, and Elton has consistently been part of our squad since 2018.

“There’s a good culture in the group in that guys are disappointed not to get chosen but they never get negative, they know they have another role in the team. We have had a group of players who have contributed for weeks, every day, but have not had the chance to play, but they don’t get negative. A guy like Elton has been outstanding in that regard,” Nienaber said.

Springbok team: Damian Willemse, Sbu Nkosi, Jesse Kriel, Francois Steyn, Aphelele Fassi, Elton Jantjies (vice-captain), Cobus Reinach, Jasper Wiese, Kwagga Smith, Siya Kolisi (captain), Lood de Jager, Eben Etzebeth, Wilco Louw, Joseph Dweba, Ox Nché. Bench – Malcolm Marx, Trevor Nyakane, Vincent Koch, Marvin Orie, Marco van Staden, Dan du Preez, Herschel Jantjies, Morné Steyn.

Eben Etzebeth

Physically imposing locks are common in South Africa, but there remains something special about Etzebeth. At 2.03m and 117kg he has the physical attributes needed for his set-piece roles, but the 23-year-old is also a formidable ball-carrier, a good linking man and a force at the breakdown. In his prime and with 37 caps to his name, the time is surely right for Etzebeth to explode on the world stage and prove himself a worthy successor to Bakkies Botha.

John Hardie

Dynamic openside flank John Hardie has proved his worth in SuperRugby for the Highlanders and now he needs to prove his commitment to the Scottish cause after controversially being parachuted into the squad, without being associated to a club in Scotland but having a Scottish grandmother. A consistent performer with a huge work-rate, he brings physicality and excellent skills and judgement to the crucial breakdown area.

Lelei Amanaki Mafi

Most Japanese rugby players are small and nippy, but eighthman Lelei Mafi weighs 111kg and is 6’2, which is sizeable for any back-rower. Strong, fast and athletic, Mafi is a marvellous support runner and a terrific force in the collisions that dominate rugby. The 25-year-old of Tongan heritage plays for NTT Shining Arcs.

Tim Nanai-Williams

The 26-year-old cousin of Sonny Bill Williams is a special talent with game-breaking skill who Samoa have mostly used at fullback, although he can play almost anywhere in the backline. Nanai-Williams has provided plenty of excitement in the colours of the pacy Chiefs side that won two Super Rugby titles, but gave up on his dream of playing for the All Blacks in favour of the land of his parents.

Takudzwa Ngwenya

The scorer of the 2007 try of the tournament when he skinned Bryan Habana (who would go on to be named IRB Player of the Year), is the USA’s star player and the first-choice wing of the Biarritz team which is trying to get out of the second division of French rugby. One of only three Americans to appear in the colours of the Barbarians, Ngwenya’s pace is still blistering and the 30-year-old will obviously be relishing a potential rematch with Habana along with the rest of us.