WP: We couldn’t have done more
4 Jul 2012
Managing director Rob Wagner says WP Rugby did everything in its power to retain Handré Pollard and that rugby fans need to understand that player movement is a part of professional sport.
The Western Cape rugby community is up in arms about the loss of Pollard. The SA U20 and WP U18 flyhalf will be furthering his career with the Bulls.
Pollard starred for the SA U20 side in the recent Junior World Championship and has already been identified as a potential Springbok by senior South Africa coach Heyneke Meyer. Many rugby fans in the Western Cape are angry that such a promising talent will soon be playing for the Bulls, and feel that WP are to blame for ‘allowing Pollard to slip through the net’.
On Wednesday, Wagner told the media that this was not the case, and that the union did everything it could to keep Pollard in the Cape so that he would one day represent WP and the Stormers.
In the end, the decision to leave was the player’s, and it was a decision WP was forced to accept.
‘WP identified Handré as a talented 12-year-old and from there he went through to our elite teams at U13 and U16 level, and is presently at U18 level,’ said Wagner.
‘We first met with Mr Pollard Snr and Handré in August 2010 to discuss a contract. At that point, Mr Pollard said that Handré still needed to decide whether he would continue with rugby or concentrate on his studies.’
According to Wagner, WP contacted Pollard Snr again in August 2011 to ask about Handré’s decision. It was then confirmed by Pollard Snr that Handré had been offered a contract by the Bulls and Sharks, but that no final decision had been made.
‘In between all of this, we put a lot of time into his coaching and at the end of 2011 he was even invited by Stormers coach Allister Coetzee to join the Super Rugby training group,’ said Wagner.
‘We couldn’t have done anything more to keep him here. As I said, we offered him a contract in 2010, we certainly did not scurry to try and offer him something once it emerged that he had been offered something by the Bulls.’
There is a perception that Western Province doesn’t do enough to retain its young talent. Wagner said the perception was frustrating, and false.
He said that the union can’t afford to keep every youngster it develops and that players will move to other franchises or even overseas if they feel that there are better opportunities to develop or make some money.
He alluded to the players that have most recently left the Stormers and WP for another SA franchise, namely Johann Sadie and JJ Engelbrecht (who are now both at the Bulls). When these players were at the Stormers they were not guaranteed game time ahead of players like Jean de Villiers, Juan de Jongh, Bryan Habana and Gio Aplon to name a few.
Jaque Fourie left the union at the end of 2011 to take up a lucrative contract in Japan, and Quinn Roux recently joined Irish club Leinster to develop his game. Roux’s move is also due to the fact that he won’t enjoy much game time at the Stormers as there are currently four other players ahead of him in the second-row queue.
‘In a professional era, out of contract players have the freedom of movement,’ said Wagner. ‘The competition for players will go on, players will move, and when they do they will move for many reasons. Finance as well as playing opportunities will factor into their decisions.
‘We’ve seen that CJ Stander [Bulls] will be going to Ireland, Sias Ebersohn [Cheetahs] will be going to the Force, Jaque Fourie has gone to Japan and most recently Quinn Roux signed a deal with Leinster. That’s to name but a few players. It’s not because we or any other union is not trying to keep them. Do you think Free State doesn’t try to keep their players? They probably lose more players than anybody else.
‘The Sharks tried to keep Peter Grant, but he came to us. The Cheetahs tried to keep Joe Pietersen, the Bulls tried to keep Quinn, but they all came to us… players moving to other unions is all part and parcel of the professional era.’
Wagner said that he was proud of WP’s junior structures and facilities, and hoped that the union would continue to produce great young talent. However, he said it’s unrealistic to expect the union to retain every one of their promising youngsters.
‘We have the ability to unearth and nurture top talent, and if you think about this season alone there are already a number of youngsters that have become household names. Eben Etzebeth, Siya Kolisi, Nizaam Carr, Frans Malherbe… I think we have the highest number of young players who have come through in this year’s Super Rugby competition.
‘In principle, we will always look to home grown talent. We will do our utmost to keep the players developed here, but if we need players in certain positions we will look outside of the region.
‘Talent will be identified. It will be nurtured and it is possible that these players will become big names,’ Wagner said. ‘But players will also be lost to other unions and allowed to go if they wish. It is the nature of professional sport.
‘People must understand that rugby is a professional sport, albeit a young one in that regard. This does happen and is likely to happen again.’
By Jon Cardinelli
526 Comments
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5 Jul 2012, 18:11 pm
@ufo(ufo)-500:
seeing as you posted your piece on two threads I’ll respond on both
same way unethical unprotected blind horse trading sunk the US economic market stability and subsequently the rest of the over zealous profiteering world … so will it do in a micro economic system which trades rugby talent as its resource .. if there are no checks and balances to open unscrupulous dealing and trading in any sphere, whether it be elephant tusks or abalone shells or rugby talents, the resource gets stolen for unethical gain by others who have not had to foster and nurture or develop it from source.
@David(David)-499:
yeah that sounds like a very sane and sensible way to obviate this outa bounds unethical horse trading blind rapacious money dictate game of high stakes mercenary skies the limit unscrupulous power monger dealing
Now why can they think of such simple solutions and implement it effortlessly and we can’t?
5 Jul 2012, 18:46 pm
Soccer isn’t a good example as UEFA are considering re-introducing a limit on foreign nationals fielded in the Champions league. The lower leagues in England have also imposed a rule forcing clubs to contract a percentage of their young players from youth development programmes within 50k of their home ground.
5 Jul 2012, 19:14 pm
@David(David)-502:
well there you have it.. this unprotected open cards ‘professionalism’ mercenary horse trading garbage is hurting soccer with VASTLY more depth in talent and resource that rugby has.. and they’re belatedly trying to instill practices to safeguard the clubs or home town development programs from being fleeced of all its own developed progeny…. and rugby still gotta go all the way around the mulberry bush till they are ready to discover that open season mercenary activity simply does not work…!!
5 Jul 2012, 19:24 pm
@fitz1ella(fitz1ella)-503:
The main reason for the youth regulations is to force clubs to develop their own youth systems and then employ them. I get the impression that they’re trying to ensure that clubs don’t just set up programmes and then skim the cream from other areas.
5 Jul 2012, 19:54 pm
UFO 2 500
Sanity prevails.
I ha ve not commented for some time
because the debate is sterile,U said I said etc.
Who can speak for hours on end about an 18 year old
schoolboy.And the bloggers are supposedly adults???Opinion
Rebuttal
Counter to rebuttal.
End of story.
AnywAY pal,could say a lot more,but I remain “THE LURKER”
5 Jul 2012, 20:17 pm
@ryecatcher(ryecatcher)-505:
This from a man whose nic is based on a compulsion of saving young people from their own decisions.
5 Jul 2012, 20:34 pm
David @ 506.Well done,Almost right but have always
beleived the book to be a antidote to hypocrisy.Apart from the main character, Holden Caulfield
this reasoning has nothing to do with young people/ I was young but now am old and still enjoy what he had to say.All about lifes fakesAnd are there not many of them? a.(D id I spell Belieived
correctl?y)
5 Jul 2012, 20:52 pm
@ryecatcher(ryecatcher)-507:
No, i before e except after c.
The title actually refers to Holdens dream that he’s in a field of Rye trying to stop youngsters from running over the cliff at the bottom of the field. A treatise on being oneself and not a fake, as you say.
5 Jul 2012, 21:03 pm
David @ 506.Did you base your comment on a 1 line reference
in Wikipedia?
The bible of the illitrerate.
The book is about hypocrisy and how fake people are.
Reading your comment,I thoroughly
recommend the book to you.
Is,nt google wonderful for the
ignorant comment?As your nic suggests,you slew
GoliathBut not in intellect.
5 Jul 2012, 21:06 pm
DAVID @ 508r READ YOUR EPLY.SORRY
5 Jul 2012, 21:26 pm
Jeesus, this 500 post fannyflap by all these indignant stormers fans has long since lost any amusement factor it may have once had. Seriously, what the hell are you actually outraged about? A youngster got signed by the Bulls. Deal with it, quietly.
5 Jul 2012, 21:29 pm
@ryecatcher(ryecatcher)-510:
I rarely use Google, except as a reference to check facts. As for Catcher, I read it many years ago and have been an avid student of comparative literature and philosophy for over 50 years.
5 Jul 2012, 21:32 pm
@David(David)-508: And the dream itself was brought on by Holden’s recollection of an old song sung by some kid with lyrics to the effect of “if a body meet a body comin through the rye”, I seem to recall.
5 Jul 2012, 21:34 pm
@>^..^< katman(katman)-511:
If there were sufficient Lions fans the thread over Jaques Fourie signing for WP would probably have been just as long.
BTW, I’ve always presumed your nic celebrated the original merging of the Lions and Cheetahs, or am I wrong?
5 Jul 2012, 21:35 pm
@David(David)-512:
You’re right. I’d forgotten that.
5 Jul 2012, 21:36 pm
@David(David)-514: No, it’s a kind of dual nod to both the Lions and my kick-*** domestic feline friends who have always shared my abode. My current two are curled up around me in the sitting room as we speak.
5 Jul 2012, 21:43 pm
@>^..^< katman(katman)-516:
A bit like mine, although one of them insists on sitting on my keyboard whilst I’m typing.
5 Jul 2012, 21:47 pm
@David(David)-517: I know that move well. Are you familiar with Simon’s Cat on Youtube? There are a lot of mini episodes, all of them very well observed. Like this one: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s13dLaTIHSg
5 Jul 2012, 21:52 pm
@>^..^< katman(katman)-518:
Yes, I love them. Absolute genius. One of them is just like mine in the morning telling me he needs breakfast.
5 Jul 2012, 21:57 pm
@David(David)-519: I love them. I see little bits of all the cats I’ve had in his cartoons.
5 Jul 2012, 22:13 pm
Yip cats are great animals – I read catcher in the rye ages ago all a bit heavy – what is wrong with loslyf?
5 Jul 2012, 22:22 pm
A thoroughly myopic and pathetic thread…
Probably one of the worst in the history of this blog.
Absolutely, unbelievably, fannyslapping farce.
You brokeback breezers make it so easy.
5 Jul 2012, 22:23 pm
David @510
If you have been studying comparative literature for 50 years then
we are of an age.Apologise for cretinous comments(Wikipedia etc)
I have never been a student.Whilst not taking things at face value,
I judge art & literature by its effect on me.(The intake of breath when reading
or viewing) Read J.D.Salinger
at just the right time of an anxiety filled life.55+ years ago
The debate I judged as sterile was being conducted by forum of 30 to 60
year old people.Analogy does not pass muster.
Any way sleep well. JDS became a recluse after publication of this book..
Is there a hint there?
5 Jul 2012, 22:28 pm
@ryecatcher(ryecatcher)-523: Careful…Catcher in the Rye is a known assassination trigger
5 Jul 2012, 22:29 pm
@Heavens Game(Heavens Game)-524: Chapman… Lennon… anyone?
5 Jul 2012, 22:31 pm
Tequila Mockingbird too…
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