Calling the shots
19 Apr 2010
Victor Matfield is the most complete captain in South Africa.
In the new issue of SA Rugby magazine, we find out how Matfield’s leadership style has evolved over the years and what makes him such an outstanding captain for the Bulls today.
‘I was a real stubborn bugger when I was in my early- to mid-20s. Hard-headed and unplayable at times,’ Matfield says in an honest self-appraisal of his formative years. ‘Even though I was a youngster in the teams I represented I would still want to have an influence on important decisions and I wanted things done my way. On the surface it seemed like I had everything under control, but inside I was unsure of myself. Now I see captains like that and I cringe because they are what I was and it’s ugly.’
Matfield goes on to reveal the things that have helped him to grow as a leader and what he learnt from iconic American football coach Vince Lombardi. Heyneke Meyer and Fourie du Preez also provide unique insight into Matfield’s captaincy style.
Also in the new issue:
– Bulls backline coach Pieter Rossouw on earning his players’ respect, Fourie du Preez’s dispensibility and adapting to the new law interpretations
– The Western Province Rugby Institute was established in 2007 in order to retain the union’s young players and help them to make the transition to senior level. SA Rugby magazine finds out what progress has been made
– Why Wandile Mjekevu has the potential to become a world-class wing
– Bismarck du Plessis on the Sharks’ poor start to the Super 14, his alleged rift with John Smit, and why he wants to stay in Durban
– Conrad Smith on the Hurricanes, next year’s World Cup in New Zealand, his ideal Bok midfield and life after rugby
– Reds flyhalf Quade Cooper may be a bad boy off the field, but he’s making a good impression on it
– The new law interpretations have forced Super 14 teams to change the way they play the game. Rassie Erasmus, Gary Gold, Robbie Kempson and Balie Swart explain why
– Discarded England flyhalf Danny Cipriani hopes to resurrect his career with Melbourne’s new franchise, but it won’t be easy
– Francois Pienaar on the progress of the Varsity Cup, its future plans, Maties’ dominance and how the competition helps transformation
– Former Stormers lock Ross Skeate on his successful stint with Toulon, his enduring hope of a Springbok call-up and why the new law interpretations will never catch on up north
– Jake White explains why the maul is an important part of the game and how to counter-act it
329 Comments
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19 Apr 2010, 06:30 am
sorry, the first statement on this article is too bold… how abt Schalk Burger for a Captain, how abt Smit for a Captain, Bekker is pretty good too as Captain “Most complete in South Africa”….. I refuse. He has his weakneses that bring him down to every1 else’s level.
19 Apr 2010, 06:33 am
Yeah, and just like Smit, he’s not the best in his position, Bekker is, so WHAT NOW?
19 Apr 2010, 06:35 am
“Why Wandile Mjekevu has the potential to become a world-class wing” – ok guys, discard this issue, its all ****!!!!
19 Apr 2010, 06:36 am
LOL
What a season we in for!
Matfield to captain Boks to 2011…..thats my bet.
19 Apr 2010, 07:12 am
@grant10: Grant we know your views. But personally what was worrying for me was the Lions Durban game which I was at, seeing the disintegration of the Boks under Vic. I undertsand there were some crazy subs but when JS got back on we knew he would get us through.
I do like Vic but I just feel JS has the full package. Like you I would be very happy to see him back at 2 or even LH now as he is no TH.
19 Apr 2010, 07:13 am
Hahahaha! What a load of k@k!
19 Apr 2010, 07:21 am
Well at least it won’t be a dull day on KEO…..
19 Apr 2010, 08:19 am
the heading could’nt have been further from the truth. when the chips are down vic is nowhere to be seen. in the land of the blind the one eyed is king.
19 Apr 2010, 08:39 am
agreed – what a crock of *****! John Smit will be there to lead us in WC2011! Not convinced that Bismarck is that much better at hooker…. definitely not when you consider the whole!
Big Vic will prob still be there though… bakkies and Vic are still the most formidable locking combo…
19 Apr 2010, 08:44 am
What is it with us saffas it must either be the one or the other, Vic & Bekker will both be in the Bok squad pushing for the no 1 spot, and that competition will bring the best of both out of both players
wrt the captaincy we have two world class captains that will both be in the WC squad….. we are blessed muppits!
19 Apr 2010, 08:44 am
Anyone who watched the Boks in 2008 would have noticed that Victor is NOT a good captain at test level.
He basically argued with the referees and gave them ‘dagger’ looks.
The fact that he just happens to be captain of a Bulls side that in recent years has had the most world class players of any SA team in recent memory.
Matfield
Du Preez
Bakkies
Habana
Any team with these players as well as good S14 players like Gray Botha, Gurthro, Meisiekind, Kirchner, Steyn, etc does not need a ‘great’ leader.
Hell they don’t even need a ‘great’ coach as proven by Frans Ludeke’s appointment (and success)
19 Apr 2010, 08:44 am
smitty will lead us to the wc 2011.
pdv has confirmed it.
anyone bleating about his retirement or benching him is clearly just looking for a rise.
but smitty will make all his doubters choke AGAIN, circa 2006-2007.
enjoy.
19 Apr 2010, 08:46 am
@wpw: what a crock of *****!
19 Apr 2010, 08:52 am
Victor “I kick for touch when I am behind by 2 points” Matfield.
Not for me, thanks.
19 Apr 2010, 09:01 am
It is hard to comment before one reads the article and the motivation as to why he is “the most complete captain in SA”.
Whether he is it or not, he will probably never lead SA as PdV has indeed confirmed (Rangerman above) that Smit will lead us in 2011 (huge mistake imo but that is not the point)and after 2011 Matfield will be past his best and they will look at blooding a new captain for the 2015 world cup.
So we will probably never really know how good a captain Matfield is at the top level.
19 Apr 2010, 09:02 am
@Tisme:
I agree. This article is a crock of ****!!
19 Apr 2010, 09:08 am
Jeepers Keo
Here’s your knife back….
Barneys back will fine I am sure…
19 Apr 2010, 09:09 am
Victor, most complete captain, the bulls feeding you too much **** (bullshit). He has no idea, on Saturday against the Reds the Bulls needed to change their game, but no, they carried on kicking possesion down the opp. throats. All the Bulls had to do was keep the ball tight and maul and maul and they would have walked over the Reds. I bet every one of us were saying the same things to ourselves on Saturday during the game ‘f*&k, stop kicking the ball away, slow the game down, protect the ball, kick the ball into the stands’
If the captain can’t pick this up and change the game plan after 20 – 30 minutes, he shouldn’t be captain. I blame the Bulls loss on the coach and captain and no one else.
19 Apr 2010, 09:33 am
@wpw: Have you read the article?
19 Apr 2010, 09:35 am
@grant10:
You also predicted that Smit would retire in 2009.
Well if you keep predicting you will get one right eventually.
Even a blind dog finds the occasional bone
19 Apr 2010, 09:40 am
what a load of ****
nt getting this magazine
and i’m a bulls supporter but i know the truth
IN SMIT WE TRUST PAPPA
19 Apr 2010, 09:45 am
@Kea-Cat: i agree
sometimes the captain needs to be able to change the game
u dont see the value of a captain when the team is doing well. the great captains are the ones tht show they’re true colours when the team isnt doing well and Smit has proved time and time again tht he’s the one!!!
Matfield is good, but still limited i feel
19 Apr 2010, 09:46 am
@Biscuit: do u think players read this type of stuff?
can be quite disconcerting i feel
19 Apr 2010, 09:49 am
before you become the complete captain you have to be the complete player first(or close to it)
the only time i saw him on the field on saturday was when he was moaning to the ref
on current form he does’n t deserve to be in the bok team
he’s a has been
19 Apr 2010, 09:50 am
Simon you’re allowing Tac to cloud your thoughts again
19 Apr 2010, 09:51 am
i hope Victor reads this….he’s going to open a can of woop-***.
19 Apr 2010, 09:56 am
@Papoose: Let me give you just two examples of the value of Victor’s leadership: Super 14 final 2007, after Albert vd Berg’s try, standing behind the posts, with a few minutes to go, Victor spoke to his team, kept them calm and said, keep possession, take it through the phases and an opportunity will come. And it did! And the same thing happened in the CC semi final last year. With his leadership, even if his team isnt on top of their game, he still manages to lead the team to victory by taking the right decisions at the right times!
19 Apr 2010, 09:57 am
@Brigadier Van Zyl: Yah…he’s such a domdoos it’ll most likely go to his already fathead and then he’ll go into a blue sulk ’cause he does not get the captaincy…Bring on Bekker..!!
19 Apr 2010, 09:59 am
@Horing: All history…he was acting like a spoilt brat against the Reds…
19 Apr 2010, 10:03 am
All good and well, but what happens if (when, rather) Matfield breaks down?
He has played a crazy amount of rugby. So has Fourie du Preez and Morne Steyn.
There’s not much prospect of those being rested, though.
If John Smit is going to captain the Boks at RWC 2011, he will need to be rested soon as well.
As PissAnt pointed out on a thread, it’s not just physical fatigue that’s the problem. Mental fatigue is an even bigger factor.
19 Apr 2010, 10:12 am
@Storm outta hell: History, but proof of a good captain. Victor can’t be responsible for missed kicks, knock on’s etc. If Morne kicked a bit better (1 out of 4), the Bulls woudnt have needed a try in the end and could have won it with a penalty. The fact is the Bulls played badly but still could have won it.
19 Apr 2010, 10:13 am
Didn’t Matfield captain the Boks for most of the 2008 season (3N)?
19 Apr 2010, 10:15 am
@Horing: Vic is certainly the logical choice for Captain if Smit goes…but the chances are good that they’ll be leaving the Boks together,so who’s your choice for future Bok captain then..?
19 Apr 2010, 10:15 am
@st.a.t.w: You talk such rubbish, there is no way you can convince anyone that John Smit is a complete player.
19 Apr 2010, 10:23 am
@Storm outta hell: John Smit has also thrown abuse at the referees this season.
19 Apr 2010, 10:26 am
@Kondi:
not anymore he ain’t
19 Apr 2010, 10:27 am
Is time for the old, over rated John Smit to step down. So the EMPEROR Victor Matfield can lead us to victory.
19 Apr 2010, 10:28 am
Unfortunately there are many more examples of VM’s lack of making good decisions under pressure, compared to him keeping a cool head under pressure.
The Bulls have only been under pressure twice this season and they lost on both occasions.
19 Apr 2010, 10:30 am
If the world cup wasn’t next year I would have said get rid of both JS and VM.
It is time for the “youngsters” to show what they are made of, but they will get their change after the WC.
19 Apr 2010, 10:30 am
@st.a.t.w: He never was that is why his inclusion in the in the Bok squad was questioned. While every time Victory’s name was on the list, people were expecting it.
19 Apr 2010, 10:33 am
@WTF?!?: Well if they totally fark up the Bok tests this year heads may well still roll before WC 2011 imo…
19 Apr 2010, 10:37 am
The problem SA rugby has at the moment is that they have quite a few players that has got great leaderships qualities unfortunately none of them deserves a spot in the team, based on form
19 Apr 2010, 10:40 am
@WTF?!?: The Bulls have constantly been under pressure this season. There has, if I remember correctly, only been one game where the Bulls weren’t behind at half time.
19 Apr 2010, 10:41 am
@st.a.t.w: Victor Matfield deserves a place in the squad. He has played with Andries Bekker a number of times before. I don’t know which idiot said they can coexist. John Smit on the Other HAND, he is a liability in all positions.
19 Apr 2010, 10:42 am
@Storm outta hell: Difficult to say. Andries Bekker would definitly be first choice lock, but is he first choice captain? I dont know. I havent heard much about his leadership abilities apart from the Stormers supporters talking him up(and only after they won a match). 2012 we will see a complete different Bok side. Fortunately, guys for the future like Bekker, Dewaldt Potgieter has still got a couple of months to learn from Victor, John, Schalk, Fourie etc.
19 Apr 2010, 10:46 am
@Horing: I also like the idea of Pierre Spies..the guy has houding and no doubt the respect of the entire squad.
19 Apr 2010, 10:54 am
@Storm outta hell: Spies doesnt seem to be a natural leader. But he has the ability to spark the team with his explosive runs.
19 Apr 2010, 10:55 am
Victor is a successful captain for the Bulls, but that doesn’t translate to the Boks.
Smit’s greatest asset from a captaincy point of view is that he pulls people from different provinces together, better than anyone else in SA.
Teichmann and Pienaar did the same.
It’s rare in SA to get captains who can overcome provincialism and I just don’t think Victor is one of them.
19 Apr 2010, 10:58 am
@Horing: He talks well in front of the camera…and has a quiet strenghth in leadership…I think he’ll be a great captain.
19 Apr 2010, 11:12 am
I have no issues with Vic as a captain. i just think JS is better. And by better I don’t just mean better than VIC. I Mean better than anyone at the moment.
Vic’s a class player and a very good captain. Nice to have a strong leader like that in the team, just in case.
The Springbok team has matured into a very experienced and tight outfit. There are a few players who take on leadership positiions on the field, not just the Captain:
Vic bosses the line-outs
Fouries makes the distribution decisions
Jaques Fourie organises the defensive lines.
John is the MD
Ricky buys the KFC
Earl buys the Coke (not Cola)
Jannie argues with the ref.
Bakkies is the hitman
Wynand organises the hair care products.
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