Ken Borland

Coach Jake White communicated to his Bulls team at the break that they “had not been great” in the first half, but then, with his bench coming on to great effect, he told them at the end of their impressive 43-9 hammering of the Sharks in their Rainbow Cup match at Loftus Versfeld at the weekend that he was “very proud” of them.

The Bulls only led 12-9 at halftime and were entrenched in an almighty arm-wrestle with the Sharks; but their slow poison bore fruit in the second half as they eventually overwhelmed their opponents, finishing with four tries and a bonus point.

“Slowly, slowly, we were able to grind them down because the Sharks are a very good side. The altitude caught up with them in the second half, but we didn’t have a great first half: We allowed too many balls to bounce and I think the Sharks probably won every contestable kick. But I’m very proud of the way we finished. Our forwards were really good and the backs played well in the second half.

“The bench coming on played a vital role and we were in the wonderful position to have two Springbok props on the bench. I wanted a full half from Lizo Gqoboka and Trevor Nyakane and it was great to be able to hold them back because I knew Thomas du Toit and Ox Nche would come hard at us. But our relatively young front row did very well in the first half and then Lizo made a big impact.

“Last week he did the same in setting up the try for Zak Burger and he’s also scrumming very well. He knows there’s an opportunity for him at the Springboks now that Beast Mtawarira has retired. Elrigh Louw was also fantastic for us and in the last 20 we were really able to make the tempo higher because we are really fit,” White said after the memorable triumph.

White once again praised openside flank Marco van Staden – “he has been unbelievable for us, week-after-week putting 150% into everything” – and it seems stupidity at this stage not to have him in the Springbok picture for the Lions series.

Veteran flyhalf Morne Steyn is apparently in the frame for the national squad and he gave a masterclass against the Sharks, deservedly winning the man of the match award. “His kicks through into the corner, turning the Sharks around, just showed his class. He slowly, slowly, squeezed the Sharks until they capitulated,” White said.

The coach also praised captain Duane Vermeulen and his three locks – Walt Steenkamp, Ruan Nortje and Janko Swanepoel – as being stand-out performers.

“It is in your power to save cricket,” is what Dr Stavros Nicolaou, the chairman of the Cricket South Africa Interim Board, told the Members Council on Thursday as he addressed a teleconference to update the media on the current state of the crisis in the game.

Nicolaou said his information is that Minister of Sport Nathi Mthethwa is currently gazetting action against CSA because of their failure to agree to a new board with a majority of independent directors and an independent chair. If their punishment is written into law it can only mean that it is serious, but the Interim Board head said there was still a last-ditch way to save the day, which he pleaded with the Members Council to take.

“I don’t want to speculate or speak on the Minister’s behalf on what those measures will look like, but I have been told they will be gazetted, so the game is in extremely dire circumstances. What can be done? Well the ball is firmly with the Members Council, if they can show the will and conviction to agree to fundamental principles of good governance.

“The Members Council can instantly remedy this situation if they pass a special resolution that they will get a 75% vote in favour of the Memorandum of Incorporation, which will trigger a Section 60 resolution, which if they all sign in 24 hours then the crisis is averted and they can save cricket. The alternative is too horrible to contemplate,” Nicolaou said on Thursday.

The Interim Board slammed the Members Council’s statement alleging the MoI was not negotiated in an inclusive fashion and was thrust upon them, with Nicolaou detailing a timeline from when the Interim Board was appointed on November 15 and their mandate accepted by the Members Council.

He said a working group comprising three members from  each body had been working on the MoI since January 31. The scheduling of a Special General Meeting on April 17 to vote on the new constitution had been set on March 11. Nicolaou said by April 15, every query of the Members Council had been answered and the final MoI was distributed.

“The Members Council statement has immense inaccuracies and a number of misrepresentations. We were exceedingly disappointed with what happened at the SGM, where many prior agreements unravelled. Calling for an indaba of sorts will not help because it is just another tactic to delay the process.

“The chronology shows there was extensive consultation and bringing in Sascoc, who themselves earlier withdrew from the process, has only clouded the issue. Now we require a special resolution because we can’t have another undertaking that the MoI is over the line and then we get to the SGM and it’s rejected. The Members Council keeping kicking this can down the road,” Nicolaou said.

There has been probably more activity in the offices of Loftus Versfeld than out on the field recently as director of rugby and head coach Jake White decides who gets one of the 45 Bulls contracts he is limited to and he admitted that some of the players in the squad named on Monday to play the Pumas in Mbombela on Tuesday have already been told they are going to be released.

So while the Prep Series warm-up match will not give some players the opportunity to sway White’s mind, he did say he still wanted to be fair to them by giving them game time that could get them noticed by other franchises. The former Springbok coach is intent on creating a super-squad at Loftus, full of internationals, to challenge the powerhouses of the North.

“There are some players that I want to see if I should re-sign them or not as we are planning for the Rainbow Cup and there are some juniors I have not seen as much as I’d like. Combinations are on trial too and of course some of these players could start in the Rainbow Cup, where I have to make sure our squad is good enough and our combinations are tried and tested.

“But I’d like to be fair to every player so I don’t wait right to the end before they know they need to make other plans. I’m trying to create a really talented group, a squad that can beat teams in Europe that have Test players on the bench. They don’t have average players filling in places in the squad. So my mind may be made up about someone, but I still want to give them game time so they can prick up the ears of other franchises,” White said on Monday.

One of those unfortunate players who is in the squad to play the Pumas but will be released is utility back Clinton Swart, who White signed in July 2020 and clearly rated very highly after coaching him in Japan. But the inspirational fashion in which Cornal Hendricks has fitted in at inside centre and the promise shown by Chris Smith as the back-up flyhalf have meant Swart’s opportunities have been limited. And with Springboks Johan Goosen and Damian Willemse probably arriving in Pretoria later this year, White said he could see no space for the 27-year-old.

“I know Clinton very well and I have a bit of a soft spot for him because he’s a great, tough guy who trained hard. He added value, but has been unfortunate that other players have developed so much in a short space of time. Cornal was named the best back in the Currie Cup and with Chris going so well, it was impossible to play Clinton and we’re struggling to commit to him long-term.

“So my mind is made up, I’m glad we helped him and I hope he can find something else. It’s no secret we’re looking at Damian and Johan could be coming, so we will have several permutations for an explosive backline. If a player has to leave a champion franchise like the Bulls, I like to think their market value will be much higher because they’re playing in a province where the best are playing,” White said.

Bulls: David Kriel, Madosh Tambwe, Marnus Potgieter, Marco Jansen van Vuren, Stravino Jacobs, Chris Smith, Embrose Papier, WJ Steenkamp, Tim Agaba, Nizaam Carr (C), Janko Swanepoel, Jan Uys, Mornay Smith, Joe van Zyl, Gerhard Steenekamp. Bench – Janco Uys, Jan-Hendrik Wessels, Nolan Pienaar, Reinhardt Ludwig, Werner Gouws, Bernard van der Linde, Clinton Swart, Richard Kriel, Henco Beukes, Willie Potgieter, Dawid Kellerman.

“You must be licking your lips!” Sharks director of rugby Gary Gold told his assistant coaches, Sean Everitt and Ryan Strudwick, when he introduced the Currie Cup coaching team at a pre-tournament press conference in Durban on Wednesday.

Everitt, who has been part of the Sharks’ coaching structures for nearly a decade, will look after the backline and Gold said he was particularly excited by the quality players available in that department.

“We have such an exciting backline with Andre Esterhuizen who played so well, S’bura Sithole played very well, Odwa Ndungane I thought was very good; to name a few. We have a really good balance this year with a little bit of experience but a lot of youth. We also have the SA U20 players coming back in. It’s exciting times at the moment, Michael Claassens has been very impressive, likewise Joe Pietersen,” Gold said.

Mobility is what stood out for Gold in terms of the forward pack.

“If you take just one position, Etienne Oosthuizen will go to second row and he’s played back row in Super Rugby. You have those kinds of mobile players in the second row which can only stand you in good stead. Then there’s Philip van der Walt, Jean-Luc and Daniel du Preez, Khaya Majola, Jean Deysel to pick from in the back row, we have quite a mobile team. I think it can lead to some exciting rugby.

“I’m very excited about the team, about the balance between the young players who are so enthusiastic and a couple of older guys we have, like Deysel and Marco Wentzel. Philip van der Walt has joined us now and he’s looked particularly impressive too,” Gold said.

Gold also expounded the merits of his assistant coaches.

“It made perfect sense for Ryan Strudwick to step up. His experience speaks volumes, not only did we work together in the UK at London Irish, he was our captain and we won trophies together, but he’s also been an outstanding coach in KZN for a number of years, recently winning the Varsity Shield. For me it’s a very exciting prospect to take Durban boys and be able to bring them through.

“Sean Everitt’s experience is fantastic, he was a rock in the Super Rugby competition, he’s coached at club level and been successful there, and he’s done very well with the juniors. It’s great continuity to be able to bring these guys through and I’m very excited for this Currie Cup campaign,” Gold said.