Bulls wary of White’s influence
17 Apr 2012
Frans Ludeke says Brumbies coach Jake White has given his side a decidedly South African flavour that has amplified their threat.
White has led a young Brumbies side to the top of the Australian conference, winning four of seven matches. There were fears prior to the start of the campaign that the Canberra-based team would struggle after the departure of several influential senior players, including Rocky Elsom and Stephan Hoiles.
However, White has managed to forge his charges into a competitive outfit and done so off the back of a notably more pragmatic approach than they were known for under his predecessor Andy Friend.
‘Jake has done really well at the Brumbies and you can see he has put a South African stamp on their play,’ Ludeke told keo.co.za. ‘Their mauling has been particularly good. That wasn’t really a big weapon for the Brumbies before but they’ve used it to good effect throughout the tournament. Also their physicality at the gainline has improved. He has selected big, powerful forwards and they’ve made an impact in the collisions.
‘You look at other areas, like their tactical kicking for example, they’re far less likely to take risks inside their territory now. That said they haven’t lost their ability to hurt you from broken field. Jake has found a great balance with them and added to their traditional strengths.’
White has warned his players to expect a hostile reception from the Loftus crowd and Bulls players as well as the South African media whom he intimated would be used to unsettle the squad through negative reporting on him. ‘That’s why I’m so glad this win [against Melbourne] comes now, because it helps me explain to the players what’s coming,’ White said. ‘What I will do in our team meetings is just pre-warn them about what’s coming, so they’re not overawed.
‘Nothing untoward, nothing illegal, they just love their rugby, they want to win and will put pressure wherever they can. It’s something we have to handle, and that’s the uniqueness of going back to South Africa, as a South African coach, with a team that doesn’t understand it.’
Ludeke refused to comment on those statements, preferring to highlight White’s threat to them. ‘He knows our players and our playing structures well. He would have had insight into both from his time coaching the Springboks. So we know the Brumbies will be well prepared.
‘But we have a strong belief in what we are doing. We know that when we get the execution [of their game plan] right we are very hard to stop. We will have to put the Brumbies under consistent pressure to get the result. They won’t fold and they’ll give us few scoring opportunities. They are a team full of character.’
By Ryan Vrede
Follow Ryan on Twitter
Follow SA Rugby magazine on Twitter
76 Comments
Pages: « 1 [2] Show All
17 Apr 2012, 13:02 pm
@Bismarck Burger(Bismarck Burger)-36:
Lol, ja old Harry was quite something in his time, always good for a quote.
Check this one:
Harry: “We’re not just going to let you walk out of here”
Crook: Who’s “we”, sucker?
Harry : Smith, Wesson and me.
17 Apr 2012, 13:05 pm
@Robzim(Robzim)-51: @Robzim(Robzim)-51:
classic scene
Jake White has done well – but seriously. Aussie sides are playing badly this season
17 Apr 2012, 13:08 pm
@ashampoopaloo(joel1yahoo)-50:
are you saying that after heyneke’s tenure with the boks…nobody will offer him a job..?…
17 Apr 2012, 13:30 pm
@ashampoopaloo(joel1yahoo)-50: ya but if you run with the big dogs you musn’t be afraid to lift your leg…
stupidfukkinknobend
17 Apr 2012, 13:57 pm
@Tacitus(Deucalion)-10:
I know that he was horribly misquoted by the Irish press a few years ago.
They said he said only 2 Irish players would make the SA side when in fact he never said anything of the sort.
Not sure if there were similiar liberties taken by the SA press in this regard as I didnt see him say that only 3 Bulls would make the Brumbies side.
His mouth and sometimes attitude has gotten the better of him in the past though, yes.
Should probably concentrate on the game at hand rather than what everyone else is doing.
17 Apr 2012, 14:08 pm
Jake’s arrogance? After all the idiotic Saffers have said over the last five years or more and you lot still don’t think what he said has any truth? Clearly the SAn non-existant education is showing itself again.
17 Apr 2012, 14:12 pm
@John Galt(John Galt)-55: Jake stated nothing that wasn’t true. It’s just typical idiotic Saffer inability to comprehend what has been said or present it accurately. In the Ireland example, he was ASKED which Irish players would replace his current starting lineup. He simply said he wouldn’t replace his players. This on the eve of a test against Ireland. What was the alternative? Bleat that he doesn’t trust his players? That he believes the opposition are superior? What would the morons here have said then? such rank stupidity!! It makes me ashamed to be South African.
17 Apr 2012, 14:25 pm
@Alucard(Alucard)-57: then **** off!
17 Apr 2012, 14:30 pm
@Transformation(Transformation)-58:
lol
But Alucard is correct.
just going on a question that was thrown at JW about replacing players with Irish players.
I wonder where they gets these journalist/rugby so called gurus.
Some questions are so stupid.
17 Apr 2012, 14:51 pm
@Tacitus(Deucalion)-25:
Oh don’t get your knickers in a knot… go to Ruggaworld and read the ‘entire’ SMH herald where Jake has nothing but praise for the Bulls, their uncompromising style and Loftus itself…
One only has to read most these comments on this thread to see JW was 100% correct in what he said in the ‘original’ version…
17 Apr 2012, 14:52 pm
@Hurricane(Hurricane)-59:
what happened to NOT concerning yourself with the opposition and only dealing with the game in hand?
if hammo got asked how many sharks would he pick for his team, would you expect him to say “hhmm only 3, the rest a bollocks”?
17 Apr 2012, 14:53 pm
@bryce_in_oz(bryce_in_oz)-60:
http://www.keo.co.za/2012/04/17/bulls-wary-of-whites-influence/comment-page-2/#comment-2106615
17 Apr 2012, 14:54 pm
@bryce_in_oz(bryce_in_oz)-62:
Err… oops!
http://www.ruggaworld.com/2012/04/16/white-warns-of-big-game-hunt-in-south-africa/
17 Apr 2012, 14:56 pm
@Transformation(Transformation)-61:
lol
17 Apr 2012, 14:56 pm
@Hurricane(Hurricane)-59:
24 Feb 2005
Rugby Union: O’Sullivan
tells Jake to get off his
soap Boks.. & butt out.
Like
Link to this page
Byline: MICHAEL SCULLY
EDDIE O’SULLIVAN last night told
South Africa supremo Jake White
to butt out of Ireland’s affairs.
The Irish coach hit back at further
criticism of his Ireland side by
White, who paid the price for
attacking Ireland’s capabilities
when his Springboks suffered only
their second-ever defeat to the
boys in green last November.
White retracted his claim that only
three Irish players were good
enough to make his squad after
that game.
However, he chose to fire another
volley at O’Sullivan’s squad after
last week’s Six Nations defeat of
Scotland at Murrayfield.
Despite two successive wins,
White sniped that Ireland were not
talented enough to claim their
first Grand Slam since 1948.
But an annoyed O’Sullivan hit
back: “I find it bemusing and
surprising that Jake feels the need
to comment on Irish rugby yet
again.
“He is entitled to opinions, that’s
fair enough.
“But he said after the autumn
international that he had respect
for Ireland, then comes out and
throws another snowball – if you
excuse the expression.
“I’d hope he’s not speaking for
South African rugby in general. I
can’t imagine myself commenting
on the Tri-Nations.”
17 Apr 2012, 14:57 pm
@Alucard(Alucard)-57:
Bye bye baby
17 Apr 2012, 14:58 pm
Dusky’s a-waiting
17 Apr 2012, 15:04 pm
@Transformation(Transformation)-65:
oh now i see.
I was coming in from the wrong angle.
JW always had a bit to say i remember.
17 Apr 2012, 15:11 pm
@Alucard(Alucard)-57:
this coming from someone who’s nic id dracula spelt backwards…
well…
to hide your embarrassment you could always get encrypted… but
17 Apr 2012, 15:12 pm
oh wait…
you already are…!
17 Apr 2012, 15:31 pm
@Hurricane(Hurricane)-68: don’t believe EVERYTHING that jake white sycophant alucard says!
South Africa have won seven of nine Tests played under White thus far, securing their first Tri-Nations title since ’98 after five successive summers of finishing bottom of the Southern Hemisphere pile.
The first two victories of his reign were achieved against Ireland in June, after which White declared matter-of-factly that perhaps only two members of the Irish squad were of Springbok calibre.
Yesterday, he was offered an opportunity to retract that view. He didn’t take it. Phoney politesse is not his thing. “I still think that if I had to pick from the Irish team, maybe the locks and (Brian) O’Driscoll would probably be the three players now,” he said.
“(Paul) O’Connell and (Malcolm) O’Kelly are good lock forwards. I’m not saying both of them would necessarily take Bakkies’ (Botha) and Victor’s (Matfield) place. But if you were picking a squad of 22, I believe those two locks should be there or thereabouts.
“O’Driscoll speaks for himself. He’s one of the top centres in world rugby. So, those guys would be close to making the Springboks side, but I doubt whether any of these other players would make it.”
17 Apr 2012, 15:44 pm
@Hurricane(Hurricane)-68:
Jake was always good at mindgames,I expect him to have a lot more freedom to say what he thinks now as an australian,and I think the Brumbies may have a few surprises in store for an overly confident bulls team at loftus.
17 Apr 2012, 16:06 pm
The only reason the bulls and stormers are top of their table and conference table due to their easy wins over the lions and cheetahs…they are guaranteed wins at the very least.
17 Apr 2012, 16:09 pm
71
Nothing wrong in voicing confidence for your players but he was digging himself out of a hole he should never had put himself in.
17 Apr 2012, 16:38 pm
@wallabie.(wallabie.)-74: no, they wanted him to retract earlier statements made after a 2-0 series win in SA, so he spurned the opportunity and only included BoD as the new exception.
do you imagine robbie deans will be also crowing like this after the coming june series?
17 Apr 2012, 17:28 pm
71 lol transformation that is some funny **** though – in truth I wonder if any SH team would have picked anyone other than odriscoll.
Pages: « 1 [2] Show All
Have your say
You must be logged in to post a comment.