Watson selection could cause Boks to Boycott tour
Welcome back!
Luke Watson’s recent anti-Springbok comments have put the focus on other players within the Springboks and the potential for a number of players to boycott the end of season tour.
The Afrikaans Sunday newspaper Sondag, revealed players in Durban, Gauteng and Cape Town may be ready to withdraw from the Boks if Watson was selected after his vomiting comments about the Boks jumper.
The paper reported that angry players asked captain John Smit to relay their comments to the heirarchy.
Watson’s comments are currently under investigation by the SA Rugby board.
2009 Rugby Tri-Nations Fixtures
The 2009 Rugby Tri-Nations fixtures have been announced.
The tournament kicks off in Auckland when Australia take on New Zealand on 18th July. The New Zealand then travel to South Africa where they play the Boks two weeks in a row.
Australia then take on the Springboks in only one test in South Africa before playing three tests at home. The Tri-Nations end in September with New Zealand taking on the Springboks then the Wallabies.
The 2009 Rugby Tri-Nations schedule is;
July 18, 5.35pm New Zealand v Australia, Auckland
July 25, 11pm South Africa v New Zealand, Bloemfontein
Aug 1, 11pm South Africa v New Zealand, Durban
Aug 8, 11pm South Africa v Australia, Cape Town
Aug 22, 8.05pm Australia v New Zealand, Sydney
Aug 29, 8.05pm Australia v South Africa, Perth
Sept 5, 8.05pm Australia v South Africa, Brisbane
Sept 12, 5.35pm New Zealand v South Africa, Hamilton
Sept 19, 5.35pm New Zealand v Australia, Wellington
Note: All times are Australian Eastern Standard Time
Could Rugby have a World Series?
Reports from the Daily Mail in the UK have claimed the IRB are looking at organsing a Rugby World Series that would occur every two years.
The World Series would start as a round robin as part of the Six Nations and the current Tri-Nations teams including Argentina with results counting towards the World Series. Tests between the hemisphere’s rugby teams would continue to take place between June and November.
The top two teams would play-off every two years, most likely at the new Wembley Stadium in front of 90,000 people where the winner could take over in excess of AUD $20 million.
Chances are any plans of getting this up and running before the next World Cup would be unlikely but if the IRB can get all the Union’s on board then it could start by 2010.
Springbok Arrested for Drink Driving
Ricky Januarie was arrested over the weekend for drink driving at Durbanville after Januarie played in his teams 92.15 victory.
This is the second time this year that Januarie has been in trouble for excessive alcohol consumption.
All Blacks 2009 Test Schedule
The New Zealand All Blacks announced their 2009 Test Schedule today. The good news for All Blacks fans is they get to see their team all over the country with 2 matches to be held in Wellington and one each in Dunedin, Christchurch, Auckland and Hamilton.
The real winner of the 2009 schedule is Hamilton who missed out on an international this year and will be keen to impress next year.
Sat 13 June - All Blacks v France - Carisbrook, Dunedin 7.35pm
Sat 20 June - All Blacks v France - Westpac Stadium, Wellington 7.35pm
Sat 27 June - All Blacks v Italy - AMI Stadium, Christchurch 7.35pm
Sat 18 July - All Blacks v Australia - Eden Park, Auckland 7.35pm
Sat 12 Sept - All Blacks v South Africa Waikato Stadium, Hamilton 7.35pm
Sat 19 Sept - All Blacks v Australia Westpac Stadium, Wellington 7.35pm
Springboks coach in blackmail scandal
A Johannesburg newspaper reported on Saturday that a rugby official and Springbok player tried to blackmail coach Peter de Villiers. The paper alleged that the offical and player attempted to blackmail Peter de Villiers by releasing a sex tape of him if he failed to select a player in the team.
The South African Rugby Union (SARU) has denied reports of the alleged blackmail but declared that an offical had met with De Villiers on 15th August in Cape Town but the SARU have not been able to find any basis for the claim.
The employee was advised on 25th August that they would face an internal hearing on a yet to be determined date. The surrounding drama is continuing to add fuel to the fire and is seems that some Springboks are at loggerheads with their coach.
ARU knock back selecting foreign based players
The Australian Rugby Union board today knocked back the selection of Australian foreign based players dashibg hopes of selecting players such as Rocky Elsom for the European tour.
With more Australian rugby stars travelling to Europe to ply their trade there was some hope of the loosening of the selection of Australian players based particularly in Europe. The decision is in keeping with the New Zealand All Blacks who have maintained a focus on selecting only New Zealand based players.
Depending on the likely exodus and player depth over the next few years these restrictions are likely to be loosened as we lead into the 2011 Rugby World Cup.
South Africa have this year selected some of their leading players from European teams such as Victor Matfield and John Smit. After a slow start for Matfield he quickly started delivering the goods.
Rugby Poll: Who will win Rugby Tri-Nations decider?
Well a new Rugby Poll to start the week and we will run this right up to the day before the final Rugby Tri-Nations match between Australia and New Zealand in Brisbane on Saturday 13th September.
The winner will take home the Tri-Nations trophy, for New Zealand a win will keep the Tri-Nations firmly in New Zealand, while a win for Australia will give them the Tri-Nations to add to their Mandela Plate trophy.
The match will be once again pitted as Graham Henry vs Robbie Deans. Should the Deans led Wallabies win then Henry may well be looking for a new job. Such is the pressure on the All Blacks a loss is seen as a failure in the rugby proud country.
The Wallabies will be extra keen to atone for their disaster in Johannesburg where the Boks annihilated the Wallabies 53-8. The team is feeling the pain and embarrasment of seemingly giving up and this clash will be their final chance to redeem themselves before the Bledisloe Cup clash in New Zealand ahead of the European rugby tour in November.
Plus to add extra sparkle the Bledisloe Cup is still alive and well. A win for the All Blacks secures them while a win for the Wallabies will keep the series open until the Hong Kong Bledisloe clash.
All these ingredigents should add up to a most interesting clash. Vote now in our Rugby Poll on Who will win the Rugby Tri-Nations decider?
Is Peter de Villiers arrogant or off the planet?
Peter de Villiers is perhaps one of the more unusual international coaches in the game at the moment but he is also prone to digging a hole for himself after each press conference he attends.
De Villiers has been slated by the press of late, particularly in South Africa where he has been bagged for trying to change the successful Springbok style of play to accomodate the change to the game with the new ELVs. De Villiers early attempts at this change in style have been poor but no new style can click from day one but it seems odd to change what has been successful for so long.
De Villiers has been dogmatic in his approach that he is right and that what he is aiming to achieve will be vindicated when it all comes together. De Villiers labelled the win against the Wallabies as a vindication of what he is trying to achieve and while it did not all click on his opinion it was a good start.
Peter de Villiers did not stop there and went on to say, “The same people who threw their robes on the ground when Jesus rode on a donkey were the same people who crowned him and hit him with sticks and stuff like that, and were the same people who said afterwards how we shouldn’t have done that, he’s the son of God. So that’s exactly what we do. You have to look at history is repeating itself, and I’m not saying that I’m God.”
Quite creative I think but De Villiers should perhaps not look at the game as an indication of where his style is taking the Boks but more a case of getting the basics right such as ball control, passing, kick game etc.
Everything worked while the Wallabies seemed badly off the pace, poor kicking, passing and lack of straight running. When a side such as the Boks fire and the opposite side does not then the score can clearly blow out quickly as we saw in the 53-8 drubbing.
However, the way the Boks played is nothing we have not seen before. The Boks have always been able to play an expansive game and with speed to burn can score tries from anywhere. All the Boks did was deliver which was not so much about De Villiers coaching but about the players getting their act together.
De Villiers could perhaps focus more on training and coaching rather than sharing his outlandish views with the press each time he speaks to them. It is like he is constantly looking for vindication from whoever will listen that he knows what he is doing and will be successful. De Villiers is blessed with a fantastic squad and amazing depth, their is no excuse for failing with the squad at his disposal.
So what do you think, Is Peter de Villiers arrogant or off the planet?
Rugby Tri-Nations: South Africa 53 Australia 8 Video Highlights
The Springboks were devastating easily turning in their best performance of the year in their destruction of the Wallabies in an eight try to one effort. The Wallabies were only in the match for the first five minutes until the Boks to total control of the match,
Check out the video highlights below from the match.