Back where he belongs
16 Jul 2010
John Smit wants to keep wearing the Bok No 2 jersey.
‘Would you start at hooker if you weren’t captain?’ It’s a question that has John Smit rolling his eyes. ‘Aw, come on,’ says Smit, who’s had to deal with the question since assuming the Bok captaincy in 2004. It’s a question that’s become even more relevant with the rise of Bismarck du Plessis.
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His face undergoes a transformation; the annoyed countenance morphing into a look of patience reserved for the ignorant and uneducated. He finally leans back in his chair and puts his hands behind his head, completely at ease. He smiles in a way that says I’ll never understand.
Statements about Smit’s playing ability are usually tempered with talk of his value as a leader. Popular perception is that you need to accommodate Smit in the Bok starting line-up because he’s the skipper, not because he’s the best player in his position.
The decision to shift Smit to tighthead in 2008 seemed to affirm the conjecture. Coach Peter de Villiers admitted there were better tightheads, but felt the move was necessary since he envisioned Smit and Du Plessis playing in tandem at the 2011 World Cup.
Du Plessis sustained a serious neck injury towards the end of the recent Super 14, which ruled him out of the Tri-Nations. It was a blow for the Boks, but one that brought about a necessary change in thinking. Smit moved back to hooker, and the move won’t be as temporary as some may expect.
So putting the question to the 32-year-old again, I ask Smit if the rugby community will ever give him his due. Now that he’s back in his favourite position, will they acknowledge him as one of South Africa’s finest hookers? It’s a question that doesn’t receive an answer as much as an explanation as to why it’s the wrong question.
‘The people close to me appreciate me for the player that I am,’ he says confidently. ‘I don’t feel unappreciated, and I’m certainly not unhappy with what I’ve achieved. If I had a chance to rewrite my script, I wouldn’t change much. The move to tighthead was a massive challenge, but if I look back at 2009 when we beat the British & Irish Lions and won the Tri-Nations, it was one of the best years of my career, if not my life.
‘In 2008, I was at the stage where I was thinking a lot less about what was good for me, and more about what was good for the team. That’s why I put my hand up to play prop. I know there will come a time when what’s best for the team is for me to stand aside completely, and that decision lies with the Springbok or Sharks coaching staff. For now, my ambition is to be part of a successful team.
‘I get far more satisfaction out of winning a match or a series than being named Man of the Match or reading about my 9/10 review in the Sunday papers. It’s nice to be the hero, but it’s my job to make the other guys heroes. I want to be the best hooker in the world, but I get more satisfaction out of a win than personal plaudits.’
CJ van der Linde recently signed a six-month contract with the Cheetahs, while another Ireland-based prop in BJ Botha could be moving back to South Africa in the near future. With these two available, the South African front-row stocks have been bolstered considerably, although if required, Smit could still slot in at No 3.
There aren’t too many people who think Smit’s move to tighthead was a success.
Os du Randt, the new Bok scrum coach, believes Smit is a better bet at No 2, while another former South African hardman in Rob Kempson felt the decision to shift Smit was flawed.
‘John moved there to fill a void, and unfortunately, it didn’t work out, as results will confirm,’ Kempson says. ‘It’s hard to pinpoint exactly what the problem was technically, as you can never tell unless you’re scrumming against a player.
‘Hooker is his strongest position and if he’s going to captain South Africa at the next World Cup, that is where he must play. Apart from his contributions in other areas, he’s unparalleled as a scrummaging hooker, with Gary Botha probably the second in this respect. If John is playing hooker, it will certainly make the job of whoever is playing tighthead that much easier.’
Bok forwards coach Gary Gold, on the other hand, doesn’t believe the move was a complete failure.
‘So many people focus on the Benn Robinson incidents [where the Wallabies’ No 1 embarrassed Smit during the 2009 Tri-Nations], but it isn’t easy to scrum against those smaller looseheads,’ says Gold. ‘The biggest priority of the scrum is synergy, so you can’t blame one guy, as all eight players need to scrum well. You also have to realise that he’s played less than 10 Tests at tighthead. There are a lot of technical things that need time to develop, technical things that help when you’re up against a shorter guy like Robinson, who can use your own physical strength against you.’
From a scrumming point of view, Smit admits he did all he could just to ensure the Bok scrum didn’t move backwards.
‘There was a lot of trepidation when I moved to tighthead in 2008,’ he recalls. ‘I had played tighthead before, making my debut in Super Rugby alongside Ollie le Roux and Chris Rossouw for the Sharks, but when I put my hand up to play it again in 2008, I was secretly hoping not to snap my neck. It’s a position where experience is crucial, experience I didn’t have, so I had to use a few other tricks to survive.
‘Over the years, when I was playing hooker, I saw what the loosehead would try to do to the tighthead, and I also knew what other tightheads didn’t like from a hooker. I used the knowledge gained by playing 80-plus Tests at hooker to my advantage.
‘If I look back at my time at tighthead, I’d have to say it was far more demanding to do my job as a captain from that position. We were under a lot of pressure at the scrum, and I did all I could to hold my own. It’s not as if we destroyed looseheads, but we often did enough to get that right shoulder.
‘We did fantastically well in other departments, but often people looked at the scrum and said we didn’t dominate. Obviously you want a Bok team to dominate everything, but what about all the rucks we hit, the tackles we made and the ball-carries?
‘The lowlight of my time at prop was the line of questioning. All the attention I got playing tighthead, it seemed like the media didn’t have anything else to write about. I had to try and diffuse the media, saying they should judge me at the end of a two-year period, because no matter what I said and no matter what the results were, the same story would come out every weekend.
‘Then you have a situation where your team-mates are trying to defend you and your coach tries to defend you, it was frustrating. Maybe the media persisted because it was an idea Peter de Villiers had driven, and any idea Peter drives is usually scrutinised by them.’
While Smit battled at the scrum, he delivered some industrious performances around the park. Gold said the Springbok management felt their decision to move Smit was vindicated and couldn’t understand why the public and media harped on about a perceived lack of dominance at the scrum.
‘There are eight to 10 scrums per game, but over 100 breakdowns, so we felt that with John’s mobility, defence and decision-making at the breakdown, he would be a great asset at prop,’ says Gold. ‘He adds plenty of value as a ball-carrier. That first try in the first Test against the Lions is a case in point; he had guys hanging on to him as he went over the line, and had left Brian O’Driscoll trailing in his wake.
‘The experience of scrumming at prop will make him a better hooker. Physically he’s probably the strongest hooker in world rugby, and his strength is particularly uncompromising at the scrum. His physique is suited to hooker in that he’s the perfect height and has a powerful core. He’s very good at the hit, and because he works so hard at his squats in the gym he’s able to generate immense power.’
In theory, a Test team that struggles at the scrum can still get the upper hand if they win the battle at the collisions and breakdown. It’s a point that’s prompted plenty of debate, and Smit feels that winning a scrum gives a team a psychological edge over their opponents.
‘The scrum determines the pack’s confidence. You can’t just say we’ll hang in there in the scrums, but drive the opposition in the lineout and smash them at the breakdowns. It’s like the first punch in a fight. If one oke throws a punch and connects, the second guy is rattled and will be thinking about that first punch for the rest of the fight.
‘The Super 14 is very different to Test rugby, and the northern hemisphere competitions, where scrumming is vitally important, is somewhere in between. If your scrum is weak, you can’t keep the ball in there for too long because you may eventually concede a penalty. It’s about getting the balance right according to your game plan.
‘You can’t just pick a mobile pack and think you’re going to run the other team around the park. A team like France will see a mobile front row of say, Beast Mtawarira, Schalk Brits and John Smit, and just keep the ball in the scrum in order to milk penalties. Penalties can then result in yellow cards and suddenly you are in trouble. You have to decide what you want to achieve in a particular match, and a lot depends on who you are playing.
‘Having CJ and BJ back will see the Bok scrum transform into a completely different animal. BJ’s exceptional at what he does at the scrum, while CJ is a good scrummager, but he’s one of those guys who is also a good athlete. Then you have Beast, Bismarck and myself. If you have those five guys available, you have a lot to work with. It might not be the same front row five weeks in a row, but you can work that to your benefit and pick horses for courses.’
The Boks will be managed carefully in the build-up to the 2011 World Cup, a tournament that’s likely to be Smit’s swansong. There are fears that his best days are behind him and that starting a spent player in this tournament could prove disastrous.
Smit believes there’s sufficient petrol in the tank, and the muscle car that proved so difficult to flag down in 2007 will be operating at optimum efficiency in 2011.
Any talk of him playing hooker is greeted with an optimism and energy that should be transferred to the rugby pitch.
‘You can ask me to perform a role at tighthead and maybe hang in there for a year, but it’s not something I want to do for the rest of my career,’ he says. ‘I only have two or three years left, and not all of that time is going to be spent at Springbok level. I’m no spring chicken, so I want to use that time well by getting back to what I do best, which is playing hooker.
‘So in answering your original question, I want to perform well enough to remain part of this special team. I’ve never seen a group like this together and I wonder how long it will be before we see another group or era like this again. When we prepare for a match, we know it’s only a matter of getting our heads right, because we have the ability to beat anyone. It’s an amazing thing to be a part of something like that, because there’s no risk of complacency.’
By Jon Cardinelli
– This article first appeared in the July issue of SA Rugby magazine. Visit keo.co.za tomorrow to read Grant Ball’s analysis of Smit’s performance against the All Blacks in Wellington.
249 Comments
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16 Jul 2010, 12:28 pm
I will simply repeat what I said on the other thread.
John will be my personal choice as hooker and captain for the Boks to go to the World Cup.
For that to happen however, I believe he needs to be given an extensive break (until the EOYT at least) from all rugby to firstly take a break from rugby, and secondly work on an extensive re-conditioning program to get him back into shape for the #2 position.
16 Jul 2010, 12:34 pm
If JS was any kind of captain he’ll ask the coach to excuse him to go and plat CC to get back into shape and condition.
He is a liability to the team.
16 Jul 2010, 12:39 pm
Back where he belongs. Where the eagles fly on a mountain high?
16 Jul 2010, 12:40 pm
@katman(katman)-3:
16 Jul 2010, 12:41 pm
Get used to it, John Smit will be our captain until and including 2031 RWC.
It is written boeties. Silly but true.
16 Jul 2010, 12:47 pm
@Jinx(Jinx)-5:
Yep, he is just one of those people who strangely will get carried and protected through life, no matter what. His devoted followers will soon be here to protect his virtue and abilities.
16 Jul 2010, 12:49 pm
@Paws(Paws)-6:
We are digging our own 2011 RWC grave.
16 Jul 2010, 12:49 pm
why are we getting this thread again? We’ve said what we have to say!
16 Jul 2010, 12:52 pm
@Transformation(Transformation)-8:
Not me!
16 Jul 2010, 12:54 pm
I’ll change my tune…
Ricky to score a Hat-trick tomorrow. John Smit to put over all conversions, 2 penalties and a drop. All is forgiven…
16 Jul 2010, 12:54 pm
@Jinx(Jinx)-5: I have absolutely no problem with that. It is folly to throw away all that experience and leadership, but then he must get into shape because he is a long way off being the best hooker in the world.
16 Jul 2010, 12:58 pm
@Jinx(Jinx)-10:
Ri-ckie Ri-ckie Ri-ckie. You go slim.
16 Jul 2010, 12:59 pm
@GI POT(GI POT)-11:
I agree…but his best is over. Its too late to make the change now BUT it should have been made after the B& Irish Lions tour.
Leave at the top. Wise players do. John Eales was “wys”.
This Tri Nations 2010 is going to reveal a looooot of truth about the Boks and their mental state.
16 Jul 2010, 13:01 pm
kudos to you jon cardinelli you can even read what john smit’s smiles suggest!
16 Jul 2010, 13:01 pm
@PissAnt(PissAnt)-1:
ditto…
@Jinx(Jinx)-5:
These Boks are like the Beatles… good as individuals… but pretty damn special as a group… the whole being more than the sum of the numbers etc…
we need John there…
All you need is John… All you need is John… altogether now… all you need is John, John… John is all you need…
16 Jul 2010, 13:03 pm
As Steely Dan said: Ricky don’t lose that number. (weight watchers Ph no.)
16 Jul 2010, 13:03 pm
Well Said Johnny Boy! There is some food for though for all those people who ctitique John so quickly about his playing ability.
‘Apart from his contributions in other areas, he’s unparalleled as a scrummaging hooker, with Gary Botha probably the second in this respect. If John is playing hooker, it will certainly make the job of whoever is playing tighthead that much easier.’
Besides last week his line-out throwing is also better than most!
John must put in some big hits and Hard Runs and get the boys Firing! Schalk and Spies also need to step up!
16 Jul 2010, 13:04 pm
@Jinx(Jinx)-10:
Ricky don’t lose that number… it’s the only one you own…
16 Jul 2010, 13:05 pm
@ufo(ufo)-18:
aaaarrghgh…
sorry jinx… was typing when yours went up…
16 Jul 2010, 13:06 pm
I don’t think he belongs there anymore.
16 Jul 2010, 13:08 pm
@Tacitus(Tacitus)-20:
In all honesty, did you ever think he did?
16 Jul 2010, 13:08 pm
@ufo(ufo)-15:
Well as I said, its too late to let him go gracefully now. We’ve put him up there with the gods.
Great guy but he never knew when to say, :cheers guys, go and sort out the Bokke future yourselves. I’m going to play my favourite Blues CD, love my wife and kids, buy some new patio furniture and have a kudu braai”.
16 Jul 2010, 13:09 pm
@ufo(ufo)-18:
No prob. Who’s perfect? Only John Smit.
16 Jul 2010, 13:10 pm
tacci luckily the people that count know better
16 Jul 2010, 13:11 pm
@PissAnt(PissAnt)-21:
^5 bro couldnt have asked that any better then you did 
16 Jul 2010, 13:15 pm
John is vital for the Boks. I know he is like the 3rd best hooker we have but his leadership and experience counts for alot. He just needs to get in shape and in form then he will be our no.1 no.2.
16 Jul 2010, 13:15 pm
@Guns(Guns)-17:
The tide is turning… (and as Bob Dylan would say)…
Where BLACK is the color, where none is the number
And I’ll tell and think it and speak it and breathe it
And reflect it from the mountain so all souls can see it
Then I’ll stand on the ocean until I start sinkin’
But I’ll know my songs well before I start singin’
And it’s a hard, it’s a hard, it’s a hard, and it’s a hard
It’s a hard rain’s a-gonna fall.
16 Jul 2010, 13:16 pm
Keo loves this topic – sure fire 200+ comments
1. PissAnt(PissAnt) :
I really do agree with that. He needs tiem off to rest and condition.
So do many other of our core players
6. Paws(Paws) :
JS is carried by no one, he carries the team. With him captain the Boks have won U21 Wc, WC. Tri-nations more than in any other period, Lions series – first time since re-admission.
Really some people are just appreciative fools
16 Jul 2010, 13:17 pm
unapprecaitive fools rather
16 Jul 2010, 13:19 pm
Pissant.
No. But since he became the Michellin Man my original opinion has been reinforced tenfold.
16 Jul 2010, 13:20 pm
@Mike H(Mike H)-28:
John
Spies
Victor
Pakslae
Schalla
Mossie
Habs
Jean Div
all need a rest…
16 Jul 2010, 13:20 pm
@PissAnt(PissAnt)-1: Best, most balanced view on John. Nice one PA
16 Jul 2010, 13:21 pm
@Mike H(Mike H)-28: Agree with the rest part. I think him and Matfield need to take a break after the Tri-nations and miss the EOYT and join there franchises for pre-season training in December. They would have three months of pure rest. September, October, November.
16 Jul 2010, 13:23 pm
@Jinx(Jinx)-31: True but Smit and Matfield are high priority in that list.
16 Jul 2010, 13:24 pm
It’s a good article actually
16 Jul 2010, 13:26 pm
@Jinx(Jinx)-31: Would agree with most of those except:
Jean – needs some SH game time after messing around in Ireland
Spies – needs to keep working until he plays like the 8th man we know he can be
16 Jul 2010, 13:27 pm
Smit is a modest man, he has always had to put up with **** from the public no matter what he achieved. I feel for the guy. We could win another WC and still people wouldn;t say “thanks John for what you have done for Springbok rugby”.
Muppets is about the only name that does suit some of teh dim wits in here
16 Jul 2010, 13:27 pm
@iori Yagami(iori Yagami)-34:
Agree whole heartedly but others too are looking mentally burnt out. Boks look stale. If we don’t address the problem we will suffer in 2011.
16 Jul 2010, 13:31 pm
****** Gary Botha lovers – the guy comes nowhere even remotely close in statue to JS. It’s like peasants and kings at the same table.
DU Plessis a moronic thug, but I still enjoy watching him play I will admit – but worse than Bakkies as a liability boy. How many times were teh Sharks under pressure because of something stupid Du Plessis did.
JS single changed the way referee’s treated the boks. (Along with JW’s strict instructions not to be thugs). Victor comes nowhere close at test match level to delaing with referee’s, the only person close is Richie MCCaw.
16 Jul 2010, 13:32 pm
@Mike H(Mike H)-37: The true legends are always like that. He truly puts the Bok before himself, and will gladly take any amount of criticism to make sure the Boks are still winning and retaining their ethos.
The idiots here forget that if he didnt return in 2009 we wouldnt have a Lions victory, a Tri Nations victory and we’d be doing a lot more re-building than we are now, a year from WC.
I totally agree that the guys need a rest and some conditioning (especially John who has been bulking up for the good of the Bokke when he agreed to give Prop a go)
16 Jul 2010, 13:39 pm
40. THEBokFan(bokfan1) :
Indeed mate, really pisses me off to be honest.
Some people need something to smack them in the head before they can notice it.
I get angry because I can just imagine what it is like for JS, no matter what he does he gets ripped to shreds.
The thing I admire is: He keeps working hard, trying his best and delivering for his country as a captain. His teammates respect him, his couches respect him but our moronic public don’t.
Not sure how many of his critics could stand tall under so much pressure. Bet they’d buckle at the first wingle – a bit like Harry Viljoen!! Everytime teh public said, put this guy in the team he did. You know where that got us. The average rugby supporter knows **** all about rugby, include half the people here who think they do. I’m no rugby specialist, but i can appreciate something great when I see it. I will stand by JS until the end of this WC. He will then have to move on and I just hope to god someone can fill his shoes.
16 Jul 2010, 13:39 pm
John Smit is a legend. Os du Randt describes him as “an idol to me”. He is essential to our World Cup defence, and yet some rugby “experts” on this blog will advocate he be dropped a year before the World Cup. Great idea, I remember a similar thing happening before the 1999 World Cup with Teich. Didn’t that turn out well.
I’ve said it before and I will say it again. John Smit’s true worth will only be realised once he’s gone. By all means, give him, Matfield and other overplayed guys an extended break, and lets have them fit and firing for one last hurrah at the 2011 World Cup.
The only true contender to the no 2 jersey is Bismark. And even he said “the only thing I can teach John Smit about, is cattle farming”
16 Jul 2010, 13:40 pm
@Jinx(Jinx)-27:
I’ve stumbled on the side of twelve misty mountains
I’ve walked and I’ve crawled on six crooked highways
great song
16 Jul 2010, 13:41 pm
I’t no irony that the 2 best captains in the world head up the 2 best teams
Go Figure
16 Jul 2010, 13:41 pm
@Mike H(Mike H)-39: Finally! A voice of reason on this site!
Botha is a great Super14 player, but hasnt stepped up to Test.
Bismark is awesome when disciplined, but as you say, that is not often. His first few Bok games were great cos he was still the laaitie and trying to make his place, so he behaved, but then he got windgat.
Smit is the MAN! But like Monty or Naas will only be appreciated when he is not around anymore
16 Jul 2010, 13:42 pm
42. Kietzphat(Kietzphat) :
Well said mate
Glad there are a few people that will stand up and defend our captain.
As you say, his true value, like most great things will only be apprecaite when he is gone.
16 Jul 2010, 13:44 pm
When we have had a **** captain we have had a **** team.
A great captain and great team. Smit is the best of all the post isolation captains and he runs the best team we have had post isolation
End of story
16 Jul 2010, 13:46 pm
@Kietzphat(Kietzphat)-42: Excellent post Kietzphat!
See my comments at #45. Its a weird South African trait how we belittle and breakdown our heroes.
In a weird way its “good” as there are no sacred cows in SA, but we can never fathom what those guys must go through. They give their all and get this vitriol from a largely ignorant public.
We should treat the politicians like we treat sportsmen
16 Jul 2010, 13:53 pm
my only question to this article is. when is Bismark back? we need him, amongst others.
16 Jul 2010, 13:56 pm
@Mike H(Mike H)-46:
Mike, I appreciate JS, I thank him for what he’s done for SA etc …its been huge, huge, huge BUT no player or person is above reproach. He form is way off, his weight not cool and I will not say everything is hunky dory when some things need to be said. He deserves his 100 caps. I don’t hate him or want to hurt him or be ugly and unkind BUT I’m just saying beware of the signs of falling off the wagon. If you want to defend him from those who merely say…”Beware of the signs” go ahead and close your ears. I say it to protect his legacy not to taint it.
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