Jake on his fighting 50
28 Sep 2007
Jake White, in the Cape Argus, tells Keo what it means to be the first Bok coach to make it to 50 tests.
It helps to have shared an office with Jake White for three years and to have worked alongside him in the inner sanctum of Springbok rugby. So the guy sitting opposite me sipping coffee in Paris isn’t giving me a media interview with rehearsed catch phrases.
This is Jake White, in full expression, as he was every day at the office or on the team bus seven years ago.
The only time Springbok rugby takes a back seat is if the conversation turns to his days at Jeppe Boys’ High.
His dress sense hasn’t changed. The collar’s still up and a pair of socks still hasn’t found its way into his wardrobe. The only change is he now has two cellphones and he checks them constantly.
His attention span can be short, especially if the question bores, irritates or is too uncomfortable.
But I also know what keeps his attention span. Bok traditions. Jeppe and don’t stop talking rugby.
His passion for the game has ensured he made it to the World Cup. His refusal to give up got him to Paris.
He’s wiser now than a year ago, but then he spent the best part of last year taking a beating, on the field, in the boardroom and in the media. But he survived because he wanted to.
“A guy who hasn’t played for the Boks always says he will do anything to get that first cap. But the question I always ask the new guy is if he will still do anything and work as hard once he has got that cap.
“I said I would do anything to get the Bok job, but once I was there I had to show that I’d fight for the right to coach the Boks and never give up on that ideal.
“I had to compromise at times to survive and I had to be selfish at times to get this far. But I also worked damn hard to stay there.
“That’s why I was never going to walk away from the job last year, even when I was at my lowest in terms of results. The pressure was more intense than anything I had known. What kept me sane was a belief in the ability of this squad, the players and coaches.
“I always knew that we could be a contender at this World Cup, based on performance. I wasn’t prepared to hand that over to somebody else – not after what this squad had been through since 2004.”
White talks constantly about the squad, the leadership of John Smit, the support of his assistant coaches and the belief in his philosophy in selection meetings.
The celebration of him making it to 50 Tests should be balanced with a hard look at how it is that in the history of Springbok rugby he’s the first one there, he says.
“It shouldn’t be right that Nick Mallett only coached South Africa 38 times. It shouldn’t be right that no one else has gone beyond 25.
“That’s the system that has to change in our game. There has to be a succession plan, in which intellectual capital is not lost.
“I feel privileged to have 50 Tests next to my name as Bok coach, but my job in the past few years would have been a lot more comfortable had I been able to tap into the knowledge of other guys who had gone beyond 50.
“There’s no manual to tell you how to deal with losing your best players, losing seven from nine Tests or dealing with the success of winning the Tri-Nations in your first year with a young squad.
“In my 28 Tests as Nick’s technical adviser and Harry Viljoen’s assistant coach we lost five. I learned the value of a winning culture through being there when it goes wrong.
“That’s where we need to get it right in South African rugby. We need to be prepared to build a winning culture, roughing the tougher times, and we need to identify people who want to enhance this culture.
“I did some reflecting on my 50th Test and the past four years, but what should excite all South Africans is what can be achieved in the next four years, whether I’m the coach or not. We have a fantastic squad that should be kept together and not culled on the basis of the World Cup ending.”
I don’t have to ask White what the low points were in the past four years, as I was among those who pounded him while he defiantly rejected criticism that he was getting it wrong in 2006. I also know which matches are the trophy moments, because I led the cheerleading when he was getting it right.
Any win against the All Blacks is a big moment. Any defeat is a low.
Statistically White is among the best Bok coaches there has been. In terms of longevity no-one post isolation has lasted as long. But what’s the legacy? What’s his view?
Is it player development? Is it something unique to his personality? What, according to White, has defined his era? Is it the results?
“Getting the job was my biggest victory and getting to 50 is great but I don’t see it as an end. Results don’t define but contribute towards a legacy. A legacy is that young rugby boys in South Africa, black and white, want to wear the Bok jersey.
“I think people are proud of the Springboks and there is an aspiration to be a Springbok.
“Internationally there is respect for the Boks.
“My greatest achievement as Bok coach is that players and supporters stand tall in green and gold and react positively to any association with the Springbok.”
Winning percentages of all the Bok coaches post-isolation (1992)
100% Kitch Christie (14 from 14)
71% Nick Mallett (27 from 38)
63% Jake White (31 from 49)
61% Andre Markgraaff (8 from13)
53% Harry Viljoen (8 from 15)
52% Rudolf Straeuli (12 from 23)
37% Carel du Plessis (3 from 8 )
33% Ian McIntosh (4 from12)
20% John Williams (1 from 5)
*Gerrie Sonnekus, appointed to succeed John Williams, never took up the position
Did you know?
White, Mallett and Christie’s overall winning percentage is 71, in which time the Boks won the World Cup and two Tri-Nations. Between the other six, the Boks winning rate was 48% and they never won the World Cup or Tri-Nations.
White, Mallett and Christie won eight of 17 Tests against the All Blacks. Markgraaff, Viljoen, Straeuli, Du Plessis, McIntosh and Williams won one of 17 against NZ.
178 Comments
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29 Sep 2007, 11:07 am
Long drop
Don’t try to get clever, it doesn’t suit you. If you don’t know the answer, just say so – Child.
29 Sep 2007, 11:12 am
And you conveniently forget about Percy, Bobby and Os. You conveniently forget that Jake made John a hooker, Jake made Habana a wing, he made Bakkies/Vic the best lock combination in the world.
No-one can get it all right. IMO there was a case to bring back Snyman and vd Westhuizen (and I don’t like ietehr of them) D Muir still pick Ackers so there has to be something to it.
Anyway – I need to go. Good chatting to you and remember to scream your freaking head off everytime the Boks score.
29 Sep 2007, 11:12 am
Jake has NEVER beaten NZ in NZ.
29 Sep 2007, 11:16 am
#32 rex
I agree re Henry and the supportive conditions he works under vs an environ of attrition poor Jake is subjected to from those clowns above him. Highly incompetant and unethical individuals with political axes to grind, who would cease to be in an instant, where it not for the abnormal political flux and bullshit in SA. Quotas and political interference have no place in sport.
So what I’m getting at is that we could be great, if not at the top of world rugby, if the best and most competant peolpe were chosen. Chuck out the political, self serving rot at the top, have a stable and talented longer term coaches that identify and nurture our best talent available (not based on race) – over a longer period. Jake’s consistency of selection (bar a few contentious ones), has proven itself as we are now in a strong position.
If we swopped the political and administrative conditions in SA and NZ and the Islanders played for their own nations, not NZ, the reults would be very different. We have a lot more talent in SA than what is produced by NZ alone.
Well done JW for your successes and standing strong in the face of great adversity. You have done bloody well considering…….
29 Sep 2007, 11:18 am
#146 — the only, and still the all-time biggest “pumping” the All Blacks ever got from the Boks was their pretty modest 17-point margin hiding the took in Durban.
In 1928.
29 Sep 2007, 11:20 am
#152 Heyneke made Bakkies & Matfield the best. Jake wanted to play Habana centre.
29 Sep 2007, 11:24 am
The politics is something of your own making and only you can fix it.
The islanders who play for NZ are mainly NZ born, and ALL are NZ-bred. And their eligibility goes with their citizenship. Plus it’s the IRB who make the rules. Get over it.
29 Sep 2007, 11:32 am
Long Drop
So, according to you who is the best coach there ever was. Nick Mallet, who took Carel Dup’s team’s attacking flair and just had to work out some defensive pattern. End result- 17-0. As soon as he coached that flair out of the players and they could no longer produce, he infamously made Gaffie and Von Hoeslin the scapegoats.
Kitch maybe was, but can’t fairly be compared to Jake because of the time that he spent as coach. And the rest, well… Let’s not even go there!!
29 Sep 2007, 11:39 am
Never said Mallet, although he was better than Jake. He won in NZ and lost semi’s vs Aus in extra time. I’m du Plessis fan but he unfortunately lost vs Lions and got 50 point against him in NZ with 14 men!
29 Sep 2007, 11:42 am
I rated Cecil Moss and Ian Kirkpatrick. Christie was good but never played in NZ or Aus. si it was difficult to judge him fully.
29 Sep 2007, 11:43 am
People like Dawie Snyman was never offered an opportunity.
29 Sep 2007, 11:46 am
Springbok coaches since 1992 were never world leaders. [sanctions contributed towards that]. success of most springbok teams came because of the players and not coaches.
29 Sep 2007, 11:49 am
You’d have to admit though, that was a pretty **** AB team in ’98. They did not win a single game in the 3N. And if memory serves me right, Wayne Smith, the current asst coach was the head coach then. The general consensus on this blog is that the AB coaching staff ***** OLD SPICE, even when we all know the results of Henry’s tenure at Wales and the Lions.
I just think you have to give credit where it is due. And in Jake White’s case it is. IMHO
29 Sep 2007, 11:55 am
I say, make Eddie Jones the next coach so that he can shut up about the blazer. And make Jake his T.A. That should confuse the idiots in the PC for another 4yrs and we’ll have some continuity to defend our crown in 2011.
29 Sep 2007, 11:56 am
You never find a **** NZ side, especially in NZ! I give jake credit for some consitency and pride that he brought back into bok culture. but there are to many negatives for me to agree with him for example. for 3yrs he clinged to De Wet & M Joubert as combination. He played J Cronje no. 34 times and now he is not even in the squad. Now he is still finding a no.8 one game before the 1/4 finals. he cheapened bok rugby by sending B teams down under!
29 Sep 2007, 11:56 am
Tackler
Yes, the politics are of our own creation and as such can only be solved by us, but political issues ARE having a hugely adverse effect on our Rugby.
Re Islanders playing for NZ, are they only eligable once they have citizenship. How long does that take to get? I have no problem as long as they are not imports that learnt their rugby elsewhere.
Hate the politics in sport in SA. The new crop can’t seem to get away from race issues. The only way to get to a non-racial society is to stop focussing on race. Anyway, this is not the forum for SA politics…sorry
29 Sep 2007, 12:20 pm
Long Drop – still on holiday you *******?
Check the article below as posted on News24.
if JW had 3 braincells he would be concerned. Not bothered about some of our top youngsters being poached? Absolute horseshit!
If they wanted to become the best of the best they could contract such players and form a formidable squad a la NZ. Biggest k@k I have heard in a long time.
Montpellier – Springbok coach Jake White says Australian rugby can come and plunder South Africa’s burgeoning rugby talent as the Wallabies look to boost their shallow player depth ahead of the next World Cup.
Australian Rugby Union high performance manager Pat Howard reportedly said on Friday Australia is looking at unearthing more young South Africans like Dan Vickerman and Clyde Rathbone in the build-up to the 2011 World Cup in New Zealand.
Australia has had great success poaching young Springboks into its ranks, with lock Vickerman a member of the current national squad and outside back Rathbone forced out of World Cup selection reckoning through injury.
But White is far from alarmed at the prospect of Australian rugby enticing some of the best young South African rugby talent to its future playing ranks.
“That’s part of professional sport. The reality is that not every South African superstar is going to be playing for South Africa,” White told AFP in an interview on Friday.
“You couldn’t be sure that Clyde Rathbone and Dan Vickerman would have become Springboks, I think they would have, but in the context maybe they may not have been picked by another coach and maybe they wouldn’t have been given an opportunity in another province.
‘Huge amount of talent’
“The one thing we do have is a huge amount of talent and we have so much talent because we have so many good rugby schools and so many boys who want to be professional rugby players.
“It’s not just Australia. You have Matt Stevens who is playing for England, Chad Erskine playing for America, Pieter de Villiers playing for France, so what I’m saying is, ‘would they have all played for South Africa?’
“Some of them wouldn’t have made it and I can understand Pat Howard. The reality is that they probably see it as an opportunity for players who are not going to get exposed to play there.”
White, who is preparing for his 50th consecutive Test as Springboks’ coach in Sunday’s World Cup match with United States in Montpellier, said there was no way of preventing Australia from plundering promising potential Springboks.
“You can’t stop it. You can’t contract every single rising star that there is in South Africa, you can’t do that,” he said.
Quota system will make no difference
White said the plan of the South African government to establish a quota system to ensure a set number of black players are selected for the Springboks will make no difference.
“I don’t believe that Howard will only pick white kids. I would be very amazed if Australia is saying that it’s the quota system and therefore they can take all the white kids who aren’t going to make because there will be enough black kids coming through,” he said.
“I’m sure the black kids will be approached by Australia’s high performance centre as well.
“Now if you got a Schalk Burger who’s 24, Fourie du Preez who’s 25 and Bryan Habana 24, JP Pietersen 21, in reality the younger players have got to go somewhere and they can’t wait for everyone to move on.”
White couldn’t help himself with a little sly dig at Australian rugby.
“We aren’t in that situation where we want to go to Australia and bring guys back, because we’re quite fortunate, but, tongue in cheek, we go and fetch ex-Australian coaches.”
Former Wallabies’ coach Eddie Jones has been co-opted as a consultant to White in the Springboks’ coaching team at the World Cup.
29 Sep 2007, 12:30 pm
Trupisero
You are worried about a storm in a teacup.
Jake thinks the poaching theme has as much credibility as the media. His taking a pot shot at coaching poaching proves that.
Having said that he is right. There is only 30 selections in a WCup side so why wouldnt youngsters move to greener pastures. Would you sit in wait of a fellow worker moving on, dying even just to get the job your fellow worker has. Dont think so mate. In that situation the grass is greener.
29 Sep 2007, 12:46 pm
Rulz – If I had to sit around waiting I would also probably move on.
But they could make the grass a bit greener here by trying to set up a better “2nd squad”. We have seen the vast difference btwn our 1st and 2nd teams – would be great to have a 2nd team thats virually on par with the 1st
29 Sep 2007, 12:47 pm
Later – gonna watch the poor Romanian decimation. They must feel like lambs going to the slaughterhouse.
29 Sep 2007, 14:21 pm
“We aren’t in that situation where we want to go to Australia and bring guys back, because we’re quite fortunate, but, tongue in cheek, we go and fetch ex-Australian coaches.â€
So what did Jake white do in 2004 travelled to australia in the much publicised coup attempt of Rathbone and he was given the finger.
He has a memory like a sieve.
29 Sep 2007, 16:57 pm
162# Longdrop ur comment is disgustingly wrong
CHRISTIE was the greatest coach we have ever had
We won the world cup 3 YEARS after being allowed back into international rugby.
3 YEARS
No other coach that has ever lived could have pulled off that Miracle.
Have some respect for miracles you nutter.
29 Sep 2007, 16:58 pm
171# thank goodness he failed cos rathbone belongs in australia
29 Sep 2007, 16:59 pm
172# and that is against the greatest rugby player of all time Lomu
29 Sep 2007, 18:39 pm
Yep Jake is the greatest….
30 Sep 2007, 00:14 am
Tell me, which of the NZ players did NZ recruit from other countries at a under21 level or even U19 level that Australia has done for example Dan Vickerman and Clyde Rathbone of South Africa.I cannot recall anyone who has been lured from another country.People who believe that the only reason NZ is any good is because of foreigners in which I know 8 were born overseas,these people are really deluding themselves, most of those 8 were under the age of 10 when they arrived….NZ is a very small country and have about 200,000 less registered rugby players compared to South Africa…and about 20 to 30,000 less players compared to Australia so I really dont know why other countries cannot match ALL BLacks record I guess the South Africans are the next best…..
30 Sep 2007, 04:13 am
#172 It was won at home! huge diffirence than beating the aus or NZ overseas. I said Kitch was good but still difficult to judge him entirely. Dont forget the influence Morne du P had on those boks!
30 Sep 2007, 09:47 am
I watched Pieter de Villiers on SABC2 last night. It is a scary scary thought that he is being lined up for the Springbok coaching job. I know that he has coached the “emerging boks”, but has he ever coached a provincial side or a super 14 team? He didn’t come across as a very impressive person.
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