Player strike over-played
29 May 2009
Reports of a player revolt at the Lions ahead of next Wednesday’s match against the British & Irish tourists have been over-hyped.
It was reported that senior players were going to walk out of the team due to Loffie Eloff’s sacking on Wednesday and that a second-string team would face the northern tourists next Wednesday.
Andre Pretorius claimed a ‘message would be sent out’ by the players, but this was short-lived and not reflective of the entire squad. The players were merely addressed by the Lions executive on the situation and why Eloff had been axed, not to hear certain Lions’ fears.
How Pretorius can even have such a stance is ludicrous, but not surprising. Pretorius and Jannes Labuschagne were ear-marked to be used as assistant coaches by Eloff if he stayed in charge next year, typical of the insular approach.
Now that Eloff has been sacked, Pretorius was worried about his personal future after a less than successful comeback during the Super 14.
The chance to play against the British & Irish Lions is literally a once in a lifetime opportunity. Most players have described it as such, with only Pretorius willing to put the fixture in jeopardy. The rest of the squad will take the former stance and will be privileged to play in such a match.
How any players can be loyal to Eloff after his three-year failure is nonsensical. His 32% win record in meaningful matches says a lot, while Hans Coetzee has been left with a major repair job.
Eloff wanted to play an expansive game, but the players were in no condition to do so, while the analyses done on the team and opposition was that of a club team’s standard. This idealistic approach would have again been found wanting in a Test-like fixture against the British & Irish Lions.
The Lions will face a touring side comprising largely of players in their first match since jetting into the country (the Lions’ side on Wednesday will be very different to that in the tour-opener). The hosts may be in a vulnerable situation without the best preparation due to the sideshows, but they have a chance to surprise the visitors – a chance that shouldn’t be missed.
By Grant Ball, in Johannesburg
16 Comments
29 May 2009, 15:23 pm
Mmmmm, Yo-yo, the kukstirrer !
29 May 2009, 15:30 pm
#1 grootblousmile: Is yo yo also antoher nick for sicknote?
BTW wat is n goeie tyd om van jhb af te ry vir more, en waar is n goeie plek vir n paar koues voor die game, of is die square maar die naaste?
29 May 2009, 15:30 pm
#1 grootblousmile:
Ja, another guy that never lived up to the hype. I rated him a few years back but he has never really kicked on.
He was very poor in his comeback this year and now he is causing s#$ at the lions. Very disapointing.
29 May 2009, 15:35 pm
#1 grootblousmile:
btw
what is this “final” everyone is going on about?
my philosophy is something like this
…
are the stormers there?
no?
well, then it isnt a bloody final, man!!
29 May 2009, 15:36 pm
#4 Ashley: There hasn’t been a final for 7 years…….
29 May 2009, 15:38 pm
#5 Corndog:
ja, boet
the only thing the guys at sarugby can do
is eat and suip
they cant even organise a bloody final!
29 May 2009, 16:02 pm
Who know wtf is going on there? Walter, where are you brother? Who have they lined up as coach? What did JW say?
29 May 2009, 16:18 pm
Ag typical of Poepstring, all show and no go.
I actually wish that the players did strike. Lions is an unholy shambles and looking more and more catastrophic every day.
The problem is not the players but the administrators, who are useless. Loffie – results this year not reflective of the team’s quality, but a change was needed.
29 May 2009, 16:41 pm
surely the failure of this Lions team cannot rest on Loffie’s shoulders alone.
The players don’t look committed on the field and they sure as hell don’t play for each other.
29 May 2009, 16:56 pm
Strike? The lions started striking in January already
29 May 2009, 17:08 pm
Over-hyped? No ****?
Gee, I wonder who or what could have caused that.
29 May 2009, 17:12 pm
And so it turned to be a storm in a teacup.To pick a high
school coach to coach a provincial team is indicative of
the Goldens Lions predicament,because is seems to indicate
that no competent Club or University coaches are available
to fill Loffie’s post.It is also rumoured tha Jake White
is earmarked as head coach and that Coetzee is appointed
as caretaker coach.
29 May 2009, 19:15 pm
#7 seamus:
Walter and some other Lions fans close to the union have said all is not what it seems, and for once, players (and coaches) would have to earn their keep at the union, no more of this pellie-pellie stuff.
29 May 2009, 20:51 pm
Ah but that is the media, everything is over-played
30 May 2009, 00:59 am
The flip-flopping in decisin making is typical of the spinelessness and lack of vision of the Lions management – after they reassured everyone that Loffie was safe a week ago. Jake was supposed to come in an audit the systems, but the management have now fired the main cog in the system before he could be audited. What logic is that?
Is Jake going to audit the management and their systems (or lack thereof)? Highly unlikely!! Management will probably say that that aspect is out of Jakes mandate… there is no way that they will let the finger be pointed at themselves.
Now Loffie is not there to defend himself, it is pretty clear that the audit report will not be made public, and that Loffie will be made a scapegoat for all of the ills of the Lions.
And nothing will change for yet another three years.
Lose the management NOW!
30 May 2009, 11:26 am
According to the English press, Jake White is apparently behind the recommendation to sack Loffie, and is in line for the coaching job himself. Can’t trust a rooinek! The guy is not a saint, as some quarters of the SA rugby media (read Mark Keohane, Clinton van den Berg, Gavin Rich) would like us believe.
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