Untapped potential
22 Jul 2011
JON CARDINELLI says the best is yet to come from Jean de Villiers.
How do you kill the Sonny Bill Thrill? It was the question on everyone’s lips in the week before the 7 May clash between the Stormers and Crusaders, a question that gathered momentum as a technical enquiry to the point where it entered the realm of rhetorical hyperbole.
In the blue and white corner was the unglamorous challenger, a veteran of 67 Tests, two Tri-Nations titles, a British & Irish Lions series victory and a World Cup triumph. In the black and red corner was the more marketable rookie complete with tribal tattoos, a burgeoning boxing career and an imitable if not devastating signature move.
The question was asked more and more as the bout drew closer, and few people stopped to consider that the comparison was absurd. The question was arse about face, and to his credit, Sonny Bill Williams admitted as much two days before the match.
All hype aside, Williams and centre partner Robbie Fruean had come to Cape Town to find out if they measured up. If there was a thrill to be killed, it was the thrill of the Stormers’ decorated pair. If there was a point to be proved, well, the Crusaders had it all to do. And if there was a favourite in the perceived one-on-one contest between Jean de Villiers and Williams, all rational analysis pointed to the local man.
Williams’s words of endorsement left most of the rugby community in disbelief, but he put the matter into perspective.
‘The reason I came to union was to challenge myself,’ he said. ‘There’s no better centre than Jean de Villiers to see where I’m at. I would have to say that Jean will be the biggest challenge thus far.’
The game flashed by with Williams contributing four inspired offloads, two of which led to tries and two of which led to try-scoring opportunities that were squandered through poor finishing. The final scoreline reflected a famous 20-14 win for the Crusaders, but it was a performance that revealed several shortcomings and the midfield of Williams and Fruean didn’t escape unscathed. De Villiers and Fourie gave as good as they got, and Crusaders coach Todd Blackadder declared the midfield spoils shared.
Blackadder gave credit where it was due, but the former All Blacks captain’s statement did nothing to prevent an avalanche of post-match analyses and comments on what the perceived outcome of this particular battle portended for the World Cup.
Most watched the clash having already decided that any success for the Crusaders would spell trouble for the Springboks. One particular image of Williams smashing De Villiers off his feet was captured, framed and labelled as a sign of things to come. But the battle was never going to be that simple. De Villiers himself remembers
it differently.
‘I didn’t pay attention to what was being said in the media,’ he says. ‘For me it was just another big game. Sonny Bill is a good player, but you can’t get hung up on personal battles because you don’t go up against your opposite number in every single situation. There are so many other things to worry about. You have to trust in the guy next to you and work together to beat the opposition.
‘It was funny to read and hear all the opinions and comments after that game. In my opinion, the best centre on the day was Jaque Fourie, and when the best player is on your own team, you take it as a compliment.’
At that point of the season, De Villiers had already featured prominently in some of the Stormers’ historic, and some would say season-defining, wins. He was at the centre of a rare triumph at Loftus Versfeld when a combination of grit and guile proved the undoing of the title-holding Bulls. He had an important hand in the two victories over the Springbok-laden Sharks. The match-up with the Crusaders was always going to demand more, but he went into that game having enhanced his reputation as a player who comes to the fore in pressure situations.
Former Wales and Lions No 12 Scott Gibbs watched closely during that 7 May match. He believes Blackadder’s assessment of the midfield battle was fair, and agrees with De Villiers when the Springbok centre says that rugby is more complicated than a one-on-one match-up.
‘It’s more about how the combinations fare than 12 on 12. To beat a guy like Sonny Bill, you have to work as a team. The man marking him has to act as the sheepdog, herding him towards his team-mates to effect the gang tackle. There was a perception that Sonny Bill got the best of Jean and Jaque in that match, but I feel that the Stormers boys did reasonably well.’
When mentors, opposition coaches, rivals and team-mates discuss De Villiers, they speak glowingly about his ability to read the game and play his team into promising positions. Stormers backline coach Robbie Fleck says that De Villiers has acquired a subtlety that is perhaps not duly recognised or praised often enough. Since he’s returned from a season in Europe, the little changes have made a big difference.
‘I said it before when he was playing for the Boks in last year’s Tri-Nations, and it’s been even more apparent in his efforts for the Stormers in 2011. He’s grown up, there’s a new presence about him, and while it’s been beneficial for his own game, it’s allowed Jaque Fourie and especially a young guy like Juan de Jongh to flourish. It’s massively important for South African rugby in a World Cup year,’ says Fleck.
‘When you go into a different environment, you expose yourself to new ideas. Jean’s used that experience abroad to better himself; he’s taken every little thing he’s learnt by playing with or against Irish, English, French, Aussie and Kiwi coaches and players and decided on what works for him and what doesn’t. By gathering all that information, by taking on new ideas that most players who stay in South Africa don’t have access to, he’s been able to mould himself into a pretty complete rugby player.’
South African fans hate to lose, so a boring yet pragmatic style will be tolerated as long as the Springboks obtain the necessary results. Last season was a failure on both counts, as an outdated and limited game plan was largely responsible for the Boks’ one-from-six record in the Tri-Nations. The team managed to win three out of four on the subsequent tour to the home nations, but the strategy and selection policies continued to stifle growth and creativity.
The backline attack has been pedestrian for some time, and while Fleck believes De Villiers is the man capable of conjuring the try-scoring opportunities, there has to be some honesty when assessing the team’s tactics. De Villiers freely admits that his own game could be sharper, but intimates that other changes need to be made before the Springboks can even think about evolving.
‘A lot will depend on which individuals are selected and what game plan is favoured to benefit those individuals,’ he says.
De Villiers would never go so far as to say it, but the Boks are hampered by the selection of Morné Steyn at No 10. Steyn is favoured for his goal- and tactical-kicking accuracy, but the last two Test seasons have shown that he adds nothing to the backline attack.
Selecting a flyhalf with the capacity to trouble opposition defenders will allow the Boks to extract full attacking value from De Villiers, Fourie and a host of exciting South African outside backs. As Gibbs suggests, backing a flyhalf with what should be a mandatory attacking skill set will make De Villiers, and the Boks as a whole, a more dangerous prospect.
‘The midfield combination is important but I’d argue that the 10-12 combination is even more important,’ Gibbs says. ‘The Boks need to get that right if they hope to improve. Maybe they need to look at alternative partnerships, like starting Butch James alongside Jean because at the moment Morné Steyn isn’t cutting it as an international flyhalf. He’s not the type of player who attacks the line or creates space for his centres to run.
‘That bit of space or extra split second of time can make all the difference at the highest level. If you’re not creating that space, you’re allowing the opposition to
drift and close down your backline.
‘It’s almost become a premeditated thing when teams play against a South African side that has Steyn at 10. Henry Honiball was great at fixing his defender and creating the space for his 12 to attack, and that in turn allowed the outside backs more space to run. The Boks certainly could do with a Honiball-type player at the World Cup.
‘They’re always going to have the meatheads up front to win the battle at the gain line, but they need to start bringing their backline into play a lot more. They’re not using that 10-12 combination to generate momentum or create the space for penetrative attacks. Steyn obviously doesn’t complement that sort of game plan. It’s something the selectors have to look at if they want to avoid making the same mistakes as last year. They were far too predictable.’
Gibbs has also been critical of the Stormers in 2011, as the try-scoring stats will verify that they’ve battled to create opportunities on attack. While replacing Steyn in the Springbok set-up is the first step towards an attacking improvement, Gibbs believes many of the South African teams are yet to embrace the attacking dimension and this is what’s preventing rare talents like De Villiers from realising their full potential.
Williams, Dan Carter and Quade Cooper are placed on the pedestal, but how much of their success is down to the backing of their coaches and administration? It’s an unfortunate truth that in South Africa we tend to shackle our playmakers rather than give them the necessary encouragement and room to grow.
‘I don’t believe the Stormers or the Boks are using Jean correctly,’ fumes Gibbs. ‘He has plenty more to give, and I can empathise with his frustrations. We’ve only seen glimpses of what he’s capable of since he returned from Ireland. I’d like to see more of it. It’s important that the Stormers and the Boks make the necessary changes, because freeing up Jean will in turn free up Jaque Fourie. You want to get the best out of those players as a combination.’
There is still time to tinker with that Bok template ahead of this year’s World Cup, and it’s encouraging to know that while results didn’t go their way in 2010, they still have the raw materials to win the tournament. The Bok pack is capable of physically dominating any forward unit at the World Cup, and when they provide the platform, you have to believe that South Africa can beat New Zealand regardless of the home advantage.
But what does need to change is the manner in which that forward dominance is translated into points. Some will argue that conservative tactics are needed to win a World Cup, but as seen in 2010, the Boks can no longer afford to be one dimensional.
Men like Jean de Villiers need to be unleashed and afforded the support to tap into their potential. Creativity must be encouraged. Whether De Villiers lives up to the ‘world’s best’ tag bestowed upon him by Williams before that 7 May match will depend largely on team selection at the global tournament. And if De Villiers is given the room to reign, the Boks will be closer to realising their ambitions of total rugby.
– This article first appeared in the July issue of SA Rugby magazine. The August issue will be on sale from Wednesday, 27 July.
58 Comments
22 Jul 2011, 06:31 am
Ag puhleeeze man. Stop talking kak.
Too slow, cannot defend. He is way past his best. He is very quickly going the way of Hab’s the last 2 seasons.
22 Jul 2011, 06:56 am
He’s had quite a while to fulfill his “untapped potential”. You would think he might have found the tap by now??
22 Jul 2011, 07:11 am
fuc king stillllll! yessesssss! how many years must we fu cking wait! how many years must we endure dissapointment from this hyped up, overated cant offload for shi t, vision lacking inside centre from WP?????
shi t!
22 Jul 2011, 07:37 am
Nothing new to see here. De Villiers praising. Steyn bashing.Same old.
So Cardinelli hauls out his Welshman Gibbs bashing Morne Steyn. Well let me haul out my Irishman John Robbie who emphatically states that Morne Steyn is the first name he would put down on his teamsheet for a World Cup.
Must say, knowing Cardinelli, I’m kinda surprised he didn’t mention the option of putting Francois Louw at 10.
22 Jul 2011, 07:45 am
what i dont get when it comes to berating Morne Steyn, is that, how do you explain all those trys scored in the semi-final and the final of the Super 14 season 2009?
was he not there perhaps!
22 Jul 2011, 07:59 am
M Steyn is the spoke in the wheel….
Simply cannot take flat ball
sits in the pocket….skop en jag artist
Nullifys backs all day long.
and away from SA and the sunny skies and melktert he becomes even more erratic.
Butch James is the main man…..
And ,M steyns tactical kicking average….Butch far better….
Nee dorner, M Steyn is die donkie tussen die Stallions
22 Jul 2011, 08:34 am
JDV the best there is, the best there was and the best there will ever be!! His performance vs the Sharks earlier this year was the best midfield display in SA since Doring Danie van Despatch!
22 Jul 2011, 08:44 am
Its a sad day indeed when one has to start quoting John Robbie to back your case…
22 Jul 2011, 08:55 am
And now the butcher is a tactical kicking genius?
Excuse me whilst I wipe the tears from my face.
22 Jul 2011, 08:57 am
@Bod(bod)-8: hey bod, how’s it going? Well done for passing the half centuary!
22 Jul 2011, 09:00 am
@Gunther is looking to the future with hope in his heart.(gunther)-9: i don’t get the hyperb(utch) ole abou tthe guy either. On what is everyone basing their argument, can’t be from hisstint with the lions…
22 Jul 2011, 09:02 am
@grant10(grant10)-6:
morne steyn is going to be our kicker and our flyhalf…deal with it.
22 Jul 2011, 09:06 am
@he’s not the messiah. he’s a very naughty boy!(i_love_u_bakkiesbotha)-12: not a chance….
Butch the main man
kyk net
22 Jul 2011, 09:06 am
@he’s not the messiah. he’s a very naughty boy!(i_love_u_bakkiesbotha)-12: maybe the b teams 10…..
not a fark the main teams 10
deal with it
22 Jul 2011, 09:07 am
@BuckT(BuckTrendy)-10:
Hey Buck…. well and you? I take it you are now getting some sleep at last…
Shhhhhhhh about the age thang…. I have managed to convince Gunther that I am like him….. young, dumb and full of &%!
22 Jul 2011, 09:09 am
@he’s not the messiah. he’s a very naughty boy!(i_love_u_bakkiesbotha)-12: Not if Ryan the all knowing Keo expert is to be believed, Which of course, he seldom is…..
22 Jul 2011, 09:10 am
JDV is way overrated. He is a too slow, can’t sidestep, crash ball player. Way too predictable.
22 Jul 2011, 09:13 am
@SHARKattack(mabu)-5:
Yesterday, upon the keo stair,
grant10 met a man who wasn’t there
He wasn’t there again today
grant10 says – “I wish, I wish he’d go away”…
22 Jul 2011, 09:13 am
jean was the best bok back in the tri nations last year from what i remember. unfortunately those around him were quite impotent.
22 Jul 2011, 09:15 am
@SHARKattack(mabu)-5:
Super rugby and test rugby quite different.
22 Jul 2011, 09:16 am
@ralf2(ralf2)-17: who do you play instead? JDJ or Meisiekind?
22 Jul 2011, 09:16 am
@stormersboy(stormersboy)-16:
well then its settled, morne’s our flyhalf hehe
22 Jul 2011, 09:20 am
@he’s not the messiah. he’s a very naughty boy!(i_love_u_bakkiesbotha)-22: haha that was my immediate though too!
22 Jul 2011, 09:23 am
Hola el boid.
Felicidad de vosotros compleanos.
Oupa.
Enjoy you retirement.
22 Jul 2011, 09:25 am
@Bod(bod)-15: yes, the cherub just turned 3, she is the centre of the universe! how’s sol?
22 Jul 2011, 09:26 am
@Gunther is looking to the future with hope in his heart.(gunther)-24: Que?
22 Jul 2011, 09:27 am
@Gunther is looking to the future with hope in his heart.(gunther)-24: Vamos ala Playa?
22 Jul 2011, 09:30 am
Stransky the pioneer
Honiball a shark
Butch another shark
Lambie…. need i say more.
Cant remember other provinces producing flyhalves worth winning world cups.
22 Jul 2011, 09:31 am
@Gunther is looking to the future with hope in his heart.(gunther)-24: didn’t take you for a Gloria Estefan fan?
22 Jul 2011, 09:39 am
@madvillain(madvillain)-28: Peter Grant? Isn’t he from KZN too?
22 Jul 2011, 09:43 am
@Gunther is looking to the future with hope in his heart.(gunther)-24:
Gracias Google Boy
I have retired early so as that I can now really refine my unquestioned mountain bike skills in the Sierra Calderona just north of here.
When you open the Cape Times in a years time to the headlines of ¨ lean mean fifty year old fighting machine and Keo blogger takes takes the World Downhill MTB Championship¨, you will jump up and down in awe and scream ¨¨ I know him…. I know him!!!!!¨
Jeez Buck….. why did you give the game away??
22 Jul 2011, 09:48 am
@stormersboy(stormersboy)-27:
No….. voy a la playa duprante la siesta, porque hay muchos las chicas ¨topless¨ aqui
22 Jul 2011, 09:50 am
@Bod(bod)-31: milestones of such significance should not be swept under the carpet! besides, i thought the 50′s were the new 35′s?
22 Jul 2011, 09:52 am
@BuckT(BuckTrendy)-25:
**** Sol….. He has to come up with 2.3 bill DOLLARS to creditors before Sept this year. I like the idea of him squirming…. couldnt happen to a nicer guy
I far prefer my new connection to Sol……. retirement here in the Costa del Sol.
22 Jul 2011, 09:54 am
@Bod(bod)-32: eish bro you lost me there, I was just quoting that ’80s song which i believe means “going to the beach”
Apart from that my Spanish is restricted to asking for beer and “where is…”
Oh yes and please and thank you.
That’s pretty much it,
But i think i got the idea of your post with the topless chicas. I’ve been to the Costa del Sol and I can confirm that some of the Chicas are most definately topless.
And sadly, not always in a good way.
22 Jul 2011, 09:56 am
@BuckT(BuckTrendy)-33:
Where is that little kitten these days?
22 Jul 2011, 09:56 am
@stormersboy(stormersboy)-26:
I was congratulating boedrick on his milestone.
I have sent him an economy pack of viagra and some regaine.
@BuckT(BuckTrendy)-29:
I took her gently from behind one night on south beach.
we made so much noise the nicknamed us the miami soundmachine.
if you look carefully you will see one of her kids has green eyes.
just saying.
22 Jul 2011, 10:02 am
@stormersboy(stormersboy)-35:
I am not quite in the Costa….. further north and thats the secret. Too many expats contaminate the Costa playas creating the ¨not always in a good way¨ you refer to
Up north its pure Spanish and believe me there are only micro cases of ¨not in a good way¨!!
22 Jul 2011, 10:03 am
geez this fijian shortsh it scrummie has one of the worst passes ever seen in international rugby.
slow loops, above the head etc etc.
his locks should just moer him once.
22 Jul 2011, 10:04 am
@Bod(bod)-31:
google?
moi?
you have me confused with wptid.
Gunther tiene un A level certificado en espagnol.
You will be unsuprised to learn that we are wealthy landowners in catalunia.
22 Jul 2011, 10:05 am
@Bod(bod)-38: haha nice. We did the tourist thing when we went. Not that impressed, wouldn;t go back in a hurry. Lots of other places to visit first,
22 Jul 2011, 10:05 am
@Bod(bod)-38: lots of hair in places where hair is not a good thing though.
a unibrow on a woman and a wire brush covering the foreaerms is a little too 70′s for my taste.
being 50 i am sure it simply takes you back to “the best days of your life”
22 Jul 2011, 10:08 am
@Gunther is looking to the future with hope in his heart.(gunther)-37: ah. got it. Me no Hablo…..
22 Jul 2011, 10:09 am
@Bod(bod)-38:
north of barcelona?
22 Jul 2011, 10:11 am
@stormersboy(stormersboy)-43:
everyone laughed at me when I took spanish.
but it sure helped when I took gloria.
22 Jul 2011, 10:15 am
@Gunther is looking to the future with hope in his heart.(gunther)-45:
22 Jul 2011, 10:21 am
@Gunther is looking to the future with hope in his heart.(gunther)-40:
You will be unsurprised to know that Bod aussi pris les levels de A a l´ecole
It means jack sherbet
Now lets see… Gunther = wealthy + landowner.
mm..mm, no, nee, madre de mios, sacre bleu, no, nein…..
22 Jul 2011, 10:23 am
@Gunther is looking to the future with hope in his heart.(gunther)-44:
No…. the Republic of Balentheeya
22 Jul 2011, 10:29 am
@rangerman(rangerman)-42:
Greetings….
Now dont you join the bandwagon or I might start telling tales of your wifes sister.
22 Jul 2011, 10:45 am
@Bod(bod)-47:
no it means I don’t have to use google to speak spanish
or french.
anyway it’s good to see that the spanish are a mellowing influence on you.
I’m sure it’s because buttsex is practically the national sport there.
22 Jul 2011, 10:50 am
@Bod(bod)-49: haha, howzit man.
happy happy and all that.
22 Jul 2011, 10:55 am
@Gunther is looking to the future with hope in his heart.(gunther)-50:
How do you know this?
Part of your Spanish A level Thesis?
22 Jul 2011, 11:01 am
@Bod(bod)-52:
history and culture paper….
thesis comes later.
22 Jul 2011, 11:10 am
@Gunther is looking to the future with hope in his heart.(gunther)-53:
It appears you are confusing the Greek culture and history paper with the Spanish one….. I take it you were dux on the Greek paper as well
hasta lleugo…… manyana
22 Jul 2011, 11:33 am
@Bod(bod)-54:
spend some more time there and come back to me.
22 Jul 2011, 13:16 pm
@grant10(grant10)-6:
The combination of M.Steyn at 10 and JDV at 12 is the spoke in the wheel.
22 Jul 2011, 18:29 pm
@Griqua_warrior(willievz)-56: agree
@grant10(grant10)-6: Steyn of himself is not the problem, it’s the 10/12 combinations that are the spoke in the wheel
Steyn is always paired with one-dimensional boshers like JDV and Olivier
22 Jul 2011, 21:23 pm
de villiers has done buggerall this season.lost his pace,cannot intercept as well.juan de jongh much better,and even sad to say.meisiekind pushing him for a place.and he was a bystander in the world cup truimph,injured or not.keo has got **** rugy scribes,you can see it by the succes rate in super 15
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