South Africa’s Eben Etzebeth during the squad’s training session at Blackrock College yesterday. photograph: Morgan Treacy/inpho
RUGBY : Bakkies Botha, perhaps the ultimate rugby gladiator, has departed the Test arena for Toulon but the tradition of Springbok enforcers wearing the number four jersey never missed a beat.
The nephew of Cliffie and Skattie Etzebeth, feared bar-room brawlers from the rough northern Cape Town suburb of Parow, has seen to that.
Meet Eben Etzebeth; the 21-year-old kid with a potentially perfect mixture of talent and agility and aggression.
The youtube collection is already growing for the latest gargantuan lock offered up by South African rugby.
Despite only graduating from the under-20 ranks this season – he faced Ireland twice during last year’s Junior World Cup – Etzebeth immediately went about tearing down the pillars of both Wallaby pack and South African scrum. And anyone else who looked at him sideways.
Household name status was achieved during last July’s Super Rugby semi-final between his beloved Stormers and the Sharks. Etzebeth received possession at first receiver in an upright position, therefore unable to build up a head of steam before Bismarck du Plessis thundered into him.
The world’s greatest hooker was knocked unconscious in the collision. It took another few metres before Bismarck’s brother Jannie and Willem Alberts – both starting forwards this Saturday – hauled him to ground.
The stadium and Stormers bench rose in unison as if celebrating victory. The reverberation was felt around the rugby world. “In South Africa people still talk about that but, I mean, that is how I like to play. I like running with the ball, it is always nice if you hand off another player.”
The retirement of legendary locking pair Victor Matfield and Botha, coupled with injury to Andries Bekker, his “mentor” at Western Province, saw him fast-tracked into the Test team for this year’s Rugby Championship.
Against Australia he went straight after centurion lock Nathan Sharpe, subsequently receiving a two-week suspension for head-butting that denied him a shot at the All Blacks in New Zealand.
It also prompted a dressing down from head coach Heyneke Meyer, but the man who coached Botha at the Blue Bulls was surely thinking one word during the lecture. Eureka! “Ya, he told me I mustn’t to it (again) otherwise I am going to get a bad reputation. I think what he did was the right thing but he always supports me and still backs me. I thank him for that.” So you learnt your lesson? “Ya, for sure. I won’t do it again!”
We tentatively asked about becoming the Springbok enforcer, about stepping into the role of intimidating opponents, which Botha happily embraced for nine long years. The answer was refreshingly blunt. “In South Africa if you play with the number four on your back it is your role to be an enforcer and try to influence play by hitting rucks and making big tackles. I know the responsibility of that.” So you like to let the opposition know you are there? “Ya, that is part of wearing number four.”
Warning has been served to Donnacha Ryan and whoever else wants a piece of him.
We ask about interests outside of rugby and he informs us rugby is everything. We ask about Cliffie and Skattie. “One of them (Cliffie) played for Western Province from 77 to 81 and they also played club rugby in Cape Town.”
There’s buckets of stories about the uncles late night activity. Here’s one. The famous South African administrator Danie “Doc” Craven asked Cliffie to “look after” former Springbok captain Morné du Plessis the night after he concussed famous outhalf Naas Botha with a late tackle during a provincial scrap at Loftus Versfeld. Cliffie grabbed two fellow beasts from the Western Province pack and armed with a few cases of beer sat guard in the hotel corridor outside Morné’s room.
“My family where they grew up they had quite tough love. I think my parents always wanted the best for me. They were never actually that tough on me but it was probably just in the blood, the toughness.”
Eben Etzebeth: Factfile
Height: 2.03 / 6ft 8ins
Weight: 117kg / 18 stone 6 lb
Born: October 29th, 1991 (just turned 21)
Provincial – 3
Caps: Super Rugby – 8
International caps – 13
© 2012 The Irish Times

Vat hom Ysterrrrrrrrr!

Yes, I think we should go back into the archives and look up all his stupid utterences.

His claims that he coached Habana back to form, helped Lambie to improve his tactical kicking and now his claim that he was responsible for Etzebeth’s dominant form in the line outs in the CC final is but three examples of Meyerisms.

Then there is the “young players with no experience playing a test in this kind of weather.” (after the PE test and also the “young players with no experience playing a test away from home.” (after the draw against Argintina.

All bullshitting Meyerisms.

First it was Habana, now Etzebeth that Meyer coached into form.

What the hell are Toetie, Fleckie and Nienaber doing down in Cape Town? If Meyer can do his thing with the limited time he has with these players, why do we even need full time coaches in WP. No wonder they did not get the Coach of the Year award. meyer has been doing all the work all along.

Heil Meyer…the real WP coach.

Vokken egoistiese dom etter.

there’s a lot of tools about.

If you see this immenesly talented Bok team eventually get a good run of form going you can expect his ego to blow up again.

WP have done perfectly fine in handling him. In fact his performances at test level have been relatively average compared to his domestic form. I’d prefer he spent less time with HM actually, not more.

How I wish he would take credit for the dumbfucks who are NOT in form……somehow doubt it though.

Thanks for doing the “real coaching” while our provincial coaches just fill the gaps. We are forever indebted to you and your methods which were delivered in all of just nine weeks. As sarcastic as this sounds I am not doubting that HM and his team had a truly positive effect on Eben’s game. He just could have said that without making the WP coaches look like amateurs. He keeps trying to put himself inside of every Bok player’s success…even at provincial level??? I think this may do more harm than good if he keeps up with it.