Meyer’s selection shocker
8 Nov 2012
MARK KEOHANE writes that Heyneke Meyer’s failure to include Elton Jantjies in the Bok match 23 cannot be excused or justified.
Meyer’s got this one wrong on every level. A coach lives and dies by his selections but the failure to recognise the merits of Jantjies as a player is made even worse because of the obvious issues surrounding transformation – and the illusion that qualifies for transformation in South African rugby.
I don’t want a numbers game with the national team. I am opposed to quotas because it does a disservice to the merits of selections and especially casts doubt on any black player. Jantjies should not have been included because of his skin colour. He is a merit selection in the match 23 and many would make an argument for him to start ahead of Pat Lambie.
The argument that Jantjies was the player in possession of the No 10 jersey can’t be dismissed without examination. Jantjies played the last 50 minutes against the All Blacks and now can’t make the match 23?
Meyer’s loyalty to Morne Steyn is a weakness in the context of the Boks in 2012. Meyer is doing himself no favours and he certainly is doing Steyn even fewer favours.
I’ve always felt Steyn would make a contribution to the Boks, this season, and in the lead in to the World Cup, but his form doesn’t warrant inclusion at the moment and he is a player drained by being overplayed at every level every for the past four seasons.
Meyer is failing to recognise this. Steyn, so in need of a proper break, should not have been on tour. What he offers the Boks is a known entity. Meyer will learn nothing new from Steyn should he play against Ireland. Steyn will not be wiser or more experienced for getting a cameo role against the Irish.
Meyer had the ideal opportunity to evolve the balance of the match 23, to improve the experience of a player like Jantjies and to provide an opportunity for him. All he has done is insult him.
I don’t care what spin anyone attempts to put on it there is no way this selection of Steyn ahead of Jantjies can be defended. It’s not only conservative it’s bloody disturbing, given the issue of transformation and the lack of national recognition for players like Jantjies and centre Juan de Jongh, who consistently have been among the best in their positions in the country.
De Jongh, the player to provide the inspirational and crucial moment in Western Province’s Currie Cup final win against the Sharks, must know now he isn’t rated as the go to guy. He couldn’t have made a more telling case for inclusion, yet he lost out.
So too Jantjies for Steyn.
It’s crazy when you consider it also comes at a time when the Saru administration has given itself a pat on the back that ‘this time after 20 years of unity’ they want to show genuine commitment to transformation.
I can’t believe the president and CEO of Saru did not guide Meyer on this one. Surely they must have had a whisper in his ear and said ‘No Heyneke. There’s nothing to gain here and everything to lose’. Clearly they didn’t or Jantjies rightfully (on merit) would have at least been in the match 23.
It tells me Meyer is blinded by his belief in Steyn because of a provincial affiliation and it also tells me that the game’s leaders have again failed transformation.
This is not about picking a player because it will appease the politicians. This is not about window-dressing. This is about common sense in the context of South African rugby and transformation and more pertinently it is about common decency in relation to the talents and selection merits of the player.
Just imagine Steyn, given his form this season, was a black player. Imagine what so many would be saying if a black Steyn was in the match 23 on Saturday.
There was a time when the absolute racial prejudice within South African rugby appalled me, but now it just saddens me because it is so inherently engrained when no wrong can be seen in the performances this year of Steyn and no right can be seen in those of Jantjies.
What price then for change when it can’t come naturally and from within? Actions make a statement more powerful than any spoken or written word. Meyer in Dublin was in an all-win situation given the talents of Jantjies and his form this year.
I am mystified he opted for an all-lose selection of Steyn, given what he has produced at Test level this year, but I am dumbfounded that Meyer – in his choice of player and explanation to the media and rugby people of South Africa – obviously believes Steyn is an all-win situation.
Meyer says he needed an insurance policy in the form of Steyn. Why?
This isn’t a World Cup final. This isn’t the final of anything.
Meyer talks of insurance policies in picking an out-of-form goal-kicker who this season averaged a less than 60% goal-kicking strike rate in seven successive Tests and in two of those missed goal kicks that would have won South Africa both Tests.
Would Jantjies have been given seven successive Tests in 2012 for Steyn’s return this season?
Springbok rugby in 2012 needs inspiration and innovation. It certainly does not need a dated and questionable insurance policy.
367 Comments
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8 Nov 2012, 13:45 pm
HM lives in Mount Cuckooland.
seriously .
8 Nov 2012, 13:45 pm
If the definition of insanity is trying the same thing more than once and expecting a different outcome, then HM must be insane, how can an insane man be allowed to coach the Boks or is that simply a prerequisite nowadays?
8 Nov 2012, 13:47 pm
@Tacitus-43: I feel for you Tac. I think HM has cocked up here around MS and Taute for me should be starting at 15 with Kirchner benched but all in all I don’t think there is a Bulls bias the way some claim
8 Nov 2012, 13:49 pm
Keo, why is there no rss feed for your website? Or is there? i.e. I can’t get it to work on Netvibes, but it does have a widget on iGoogle.
8 Nov 2012, 13:49 pm
we need an unaffiliated coach, read: ATHEIST.
8 Nov 2012, 13:49 pm
Forget race and politics, a village somewhere is missing there idiot! HM you do a disservice to South African rugby. No, infact you do a disservice to the game of rugby – period. You actions are insulting and humiliating. They lack vision, perception and shows your how rock hard your head.
What makes this even harder to understand is how SARFU can allow this? Surely someone can step in and do something?! And who exactly is on this selection panel??
If HM is unable to see, what is blatantly obvious and apparent to the rest of the rugby world… WTF is he doing coaching rugby?!? Do you think Krusty would make any of the top 9 International teams?! Do you think Morne would make any of the these teams? So why the bloody hell are they in our team?!?!?!
HM you suck!! You are an epic fail and double face palm. I have lost what little respect I had for you. Even if we win, it will be a soured and hollow victory, because I can no longer tolerate the injustice of what you have done.
8 Nov 2012, 13:49 pm
@Tacitus-45:
Remember the article I wrote in April Tac?
Where I said that opinions on Meyer will become divided quicker than you can say provincialism?
Remember how I mentioned that public perception is fueled by media?
Before he selected his first test team I said his provincial bias will be used as an excuse by many.
The only thing I do find surprising is that it took this long for the racism beast to rear its head.
I am sure you remember, because I remember you commenting on that article.
8 Nov 2012, 13:50 pm
@Skeppie-53:
I agree his faith in Morne Steyn lasted too long. And it hurt his coaching position a lot.
And I agree with Lambie starting ahead of Steyn.
But I also feel that Morne is a better insurance policy than Elton, who is not proven in the pressure situation of test rugby. Morne’s been there. So if Lambie gets injured in the first minute, or has a terrible day, I’d rather have the known – albeit distinctly average at the moment – Steyn there as backup, than the unkonwn Elton.
8 Nov 2012, 13:51 pm
@Skeppie-53: I think when folk use the term ‘Bulls bias’, they are referring to a perceived ‘conservatism and stubborness, topped off with a rigid and immovable philosophy’ more than what they are to Bulls players starting for the Boks….
8 Nov 2012, 13:51 pm
@PissAnt-57:
I remember it very well. And at the time I said if he wins 80% of his tests, he could give them the finger.
Now that he hasn’t, he can’t. It’s therefore a tough situation, but of his own making, given the underperformance of his team to date.
He hasn’t produced the goods, and is now paying the price for it.
8 Nov 2012, 13:51 pm
What’s concerning for me is Meyer saying how he wants to commit to two flyhalves next year in the build-up towards the world cup.
It is nonsensical talk that can only isolate players and damage their confidence.
It appears a fit Johann Goosen is Meyer’s number 1 choice at flyhalf.
Now Lambie, Jantjies and Steyn must think that there is only room for one of them moving forward.
This is nonsense, surely.
8 Nov 2012, 13:54 pm
@Tacitus-60:
Tac, he could have won 80% of his tests it would not have mattered. The mutterings of this started after the 3-test series against the Poms which read 2 wins and 1 draw.
Actually, it happened before he even selected his first test team.
8 Nov 2012, 13:54 pm
@The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged as dog food-59: Fair point, my issues with HM are also based on his ultra conservatism but this should be seen a a critisism of his coaching style and not something that should be held against the Bulls
8 Nov 2012, 13:54 pm
Mark Keohane I applaud your guts. I’m just dissapointed that Gwede Mantashe’s comments came in at the same time, cause it will seem like political rhetoric, and ANC meddling, when he is speaking as the truth as a rugby supporter. I have been swearing since team announcement and this is after shaking my head in disbelief since the England tests. I know Johan Goosen is good, but has he really done so much to serve so much more opportunity than Elton Jantjies, Curry Cup winner and record holder?
Leave that, what really eeks me is the Juan de Jongh saga! The man has never ever ever let the Springboks down. Heyneke Meyer bemoans the loss and lack of experience, and talks up combinations in the team yet he overlooks one of the most experienced midfield combinations in the country, JdV and JdJ, it makes no sense. What has Jaco Taute done to deserve a place in the starting line up, even above Kirschner? Look at those Rugby Championship games objectively and you will realise that Zane was one of the only Springboks who can hold thier heads up high, given HM’s game plan. Zane was solid at the back, kicked well out of hand and scored tries.
Heyneke is succesfully killing the career, Keegan Daniels, of one of the most talented loose forwards in this country since God Skinstad, he will do the same to Jantjies and De Jongh while we sit idley by. Less than 5 minutes game time at Loftus, what an insult! Thank goodness Lambie, the other soutie, had the guts to speak out, now he gets game time.
8 Nov 2012, 13:54 pm
@puff-61:
It’s obviously Goosen 1, Lambie 2.
Previously it was Goosen 1, Steyn 2. But I think that plan has been changed by Steyn’s obvious decline.
The stark reality is that Elton never was and still isn’t part of that plan.
Tough luck. Gary Botha, Ettiene Botha, various great All Black hookers in the time of Fitzpatrick, Stephen Donnel, Stephen Brett and a heck of a lot of other decent players have had to suck it up like that over the years.
There’s no reason for Elton to get special treatment. The coach can put his faith in whom he chooses to. The only criticism comes when he doesn’t perform.
If he doesn’t up his winning ratio, then he must endure the consequences. If he does up his ratio to where we should be, then the critics can be damned.
It’s as simple as that.
8 Nov 2012, 13:55 pm
@Tacitus-58: I understand his reasoning but he is at sometime going to have to try Jantjies, why not now on a year end tour that does not hold as much weight as a rugby championship? My gripe with him is more around the JDJ/Taute issue
8 Nov 2012, 13:56 pm
Good article Keo. For what it is worth I do not believe that Meyer is a racist. However it is the ingrained institutionalised thinking of the Afrikaner to think a certain way. Sorry yes a generalisation but not far from accurate.
Certain managers prefer to surround themselves with people of ‘their ilk’. Mourinho bought a few Portuguese players when at Chelsea. Benitez did the same at Liverpool. Versus….Alex Ferguson who continues to succeed because he has the ability to think above this way of thinking.
How Meyer selected Potgieter ahead of Kolisi, Taute ahead of JdJ and Steyn ahead of Jantjies is a mystery (I do rate Taute at FB and believe he should be starting there).
Sadly Meyer is not moving Bok rugby forward. The world has changed. SA Rugby needs visionaries. Otherwise we will continue to slip……..
8 Nov 2012, 13:56 pm
As a person of colour i dont think HM is racist
but instead biased. Not along provencial lines either. But instead, his game plan aparently requires a certain type of player per position
its the only way i can figure him selecting oliver , jj over jdj
steyns selection at the beginning of the year was clearly to get the ball rolling, and then later on blood a more multi skilled pivot. Theres no way HM believes that MS wit all his good intensions and limited ability can help us become the number one team in the world, now ones that delutional.. I hope
HM seems at times unable to think with logic, cos his player management of both steyn and more importantly everyones blue eye boy goosen has been down right stupid at time
his baised leads him to disgard the merits of certain players for because they fit into the picture he has in his head abt what that position should look like
why his been itching to select tuate since his been appointed is because meyer looks over tah nz And sees there centre option, and he notices that not only do they have passing skills but bulk to. Thus he wants tuate to be the next smith or nonu or kahui
his not dropping jdj because he doesnt like coloured ppl, his dropping jdj cause he never wants to pick a small in relation to the position international centre ever
i still dont agree with it though
8 Nov 2012, 13:57 pm
@Skeppie-66:
Why must he try him at some time?
If he has two young flyhalves in Goosen and Lambie who he rates higher, then it is perfectly acceptable if Elton never gets a chance.
You don’t deserve a chance to play for the Boks. You are fortunate if you get it.
8 Nov 2012, 13:57 pm
Meyer is making life very difficult for himself.
He has alienated support from many corners of the Cape by consistently excluding JDJ and Aplon from his team / squads. He has done this even before his first test in charge.
He has been arrogant in leaving out Heinrich Brussow for the English series, trying to prove the rugby world that you don’t need a fetcher. He had to recall Louw during the RC.
He has consistently selected a tired and well-below-par Morne Steyn.
His player management is criticised, particularly in terms of JDJ, Jantjies, Lambie and Chilliboy. He does not build any trust with these players.
I think a lot of this “I will show everyone” attitude stems from the fact that he feels politics screwed him over when PDV was appointed ahead of him years ago.
8 Nov 2012, 13:57 pm
@numba4lock-68:
Great post.
8 Nov 2012, 13:59 pm
@wnbb-33: Piet & Andre Bester your phones are ringing!
8 Nov 2012, 14:00 pm
@Tacitus-69: Tac,
You don’t pick one player this day, then another one in his place the next day, for no apparent reason.
Why was Jantjies suddenly dropped?
8 Nov 2012, 14:01 pm
@Skeppie-63: In an ideal world yes. In the world of SA rugby – no. I don’t even see his issues as a coaching weakness…..it’s a character weakness first and foremost.
8 Nov 2012, 14:01 pm
@willievz-73:
Because Lambie outperformed him in the latter stages of the Currie Cup. And while people seem to disagree, I am convinced that Meyer was uncomfortable with how things went against the All Blacks once Goosen went off.
8 Nov 2012, 14:02 pm
my warning lights started flickering when he announced that 1 st group of 45….
No Brussow
No aplon
No jdv
No flo
Tried to give the oke the benefit of the doubt…..still trying to in fact.
Not saying he is a racist…..that is speculation …..
But I am saying he is farken dof if he did not think these things through.
He has now opened Pandoras box….and all of us ordinary folk gonna have to suffer while politicians get involved.
HM will not handle the heat…..he has dug a deep grave …
Mallet ?
8 Nov 2012, 14:03 pm
@Tacitus-69: I agree with the sentiment but at the moment EJ is in the top two as Goosen is injured….using the inexperience line as a reason not to pick him even though he is the no2 is flawed
8 Nov 2012, 14:04 pm
@sonofgun-36:
Nothing wrong with my reading. Keohane brought race into the team selection argument. He might not have called HM anything but there was insinuation there. Its as clear as day.
8 Nov 2012, 14:04 pm
@Tacitus-75: I am not talking about Lambie.
I am talking about Jantjies and Steyn.
Why is Steyn suddenly in the 23, ahead of Jantjies, who was initially ahead of Lambie?
How does that affect the confidence of the players?
8 Nov 2012, 14:05 pm
At those who “applaud Keo’s courage” for posting this article, I can only laugh.
This isn’t courage. It’s the opposite. It’s opportunism of the highest order.
8 Nov 2012, 14:06 pm
@Tacitus-75: maybe, but i’ve been helluva uncomfortable with the way things have gone most times Morne Steyn has taken the pitch for the Boks over the past couple of years. We drew with Argentina for crying out loud! I’d rather go with someone talented even if relatively untested, than this formless fellow who has consistently failed his many tests in recent months.
8 Nov 2012, 14:07 pm
@willievz-79:
Steyn?
Steyn was never dropped. He was rested. He moved down one step in the pecking order, with Goosen moving up to no.1. What’s changed since then is that Lambie has now moved up to nr.2, with Steyn moving down to nr.3.
With Goosen out, it is now Lambie 1, Steyn 2.
Elton was only picked because Steyn was deliberately rested for a few games.
8 Nov 2012, 14:10 pm
Don’t foresee a WC tournament coming to our shores soon.With the way things are going in rugby k don’t foresee the government giving SARU any financial guarantees until this sickness in SA rugby is cured.I really questioned this transformation indaba held recently.Are they planning another go at hosting the WC and now wants to sweet talk the government??
8 Nov 2012, 14:11 pm
http://www.sport24.co.za/MySport24/Meyer-flawed-but-not-racist-20121108
Read it … then have a good chuckle – lol !!!
8 Nov 2012, 14:11 pm
@Tacitus-82: Tac sorry but you do not have the ability to be impartial. Your Bulls bias is obvious. Steyn should not be a Bok. He is limited and a liability.
8 Nov 2012, 14:14 pm
@Tacitus-82: the point is that Steyn SHOULD have been dropped. It’s not about who’s the incumbent or whatever, but rather the fact that he’s been really poor for a long time. You don’t throw a player away, but it’s been a couple of seasons since Morne was consistently playing better than other SA flyhalves, and he needs to go back to provincial rugby and try to be the best in SA again. I doubt he’ll get there again, but if he does, more power to him. Until then, Jantjies should be in the squad as the better player over the past season or two.
8 Nov 2012, 14:16 pm
@Tacitus-80: This is writing of unquestionable quality and in the interest of public discourse.
8 Nov 2012, 14:17 pm
This whole racism charge against Heyneke is for me a red herring. Whether one really believes Heyneke is a racist or not, the fact of the matter is that this dude keeps making some shocking decisions which make no sense whatsoever to most of the general public.
It’s expected for the media and public to complain about certain selections, regardless of the coach, because we all have our own opinions. But the selections that Heyneke often makes are just too dumbfounding and simply shocking.
8 Nov 2012, 14:20 pm
M Steyn should be in Pretoria resting….
Taute should be on bench Saturday.
Jantjes on bench with JDJ starting….then the country would have been happy….and merit would have the winner…
and politicians would have been doing what they should be doing…
now this bloody mess
8 Nov 2012, 14:23 pm
@lesiba-88: I don’t believe he’s a racist myself,but just one very afraid man.He desperately wants to be a successful Bok coach therefore he believes that he needs to surround himself with people that he can trust.In his warped thinking he actually believes that the bigger the player the better.
8 Nov 2012, 14:24 pm
Great article Keo.
Now do you still think there’s NO reason whatsoever for non-white SA citizens to support the Allblacks instead of the boks?
Surely your well written article above is enough of a compelling reason?
Would love to hear your opinion.
8 Nov 2012, 14:25 pm
@phalanx-78: You’re criticizing Keo’s journalism, which is something I’ve been known to do, but in this instance I think he’s written a good piece. The “news” is not just Meyer’s selections; it’s the fact that the government and the ANC have commented on this and their is a storm of racial offense brewing. Is a good journalist supposed to ignore that or comment on it? Keo has NOT brought up the race issue – it’s all over the news, and Gwede Mantashe is probably the one we should credit with bringing it up. The point Keo has made, which I think is a good one, is that Meyer has (probably inadvertently) cause a lot of trouble for himself that could have been so easily avoided with the right selection. Not the politically correct selection, but the one that most rugby folk would agree should have been made.
8 Nov 2012, 14:27 pm
I agree with Keo total shocker!
Players like Potgieter also should never get picked ahead of someone like Kolisi for example…
And picking a white wing… when you have the best in the business in Mvovo… ridiculous!
HM could make life a lot easier…
8 Nov 2012, 14:28 pm
Although I agree with Keohane and the majority of posts, I don’t think that his player selections are half as bad as his support staff he chose.
Even if we had a Carter or a SBW, they would also have looked like plonkers under the guidance of Ricardo as back line coach and HM’s game plan
8 Nov 2012, 14:28 pm
@grant10-89: just think of how excited the nation would be right now if we had a braver coach and he had selected a backline comprising Hougaard, Lambie, Habana, JDV, JDJ, Mvovo and Taute? I’m not talking about abandoning our traditional strengths or playing festival 7s – simply putting out a team that can control territory and defend brilliantly whilst still hurting you with flair, speed and variation when it’s on. I think our forward selections are pretty solid, and this backline could have been very exciting behind our current pack.
8 Nov 2012, 14:30 pm
Nobody is saying that Jantjies should start ahead of Lambie,but,surely,the continued selection of Steyn leaves a bitter taste in the mouth.JdJ’s non-selection is mind-boggling to say the least.
8 Nov 2012, 14:31 pm
It is a shocking selection whichever way you look at it. If Jantjies was picked ahead of Steyn against the AB then what has changed over a month or so? If he was ‘rested’ then again…..what has changed in a month or so? If you rest a player then give him a decent break and find form in next years Super Rugby then fight his way back in the team to justify his selection. The truth of the matter is that Steyn is picked on reputation, what he has achieved in the past and HM is in HOPE that will play his way into form. This reminds me of an interview a while back with Jake White when he said HM will always fall back on what he trusts or feels comfortable with ie in this case Morne Steyn….irrespective of form. And yes he is not starting but what kind of a message does that send to a guy like Elton…who bar the semi in the currie cup, was in great form.
8 Nov 2012, 14:31 pm
@nortierd-94: Have to agree the biggest quotas in the team are the bulls quotas of McFarland, Koen and Luabscher.
Truly pathetic assistant coaches!
8 Nov 2012, 14:34 pm
So much of the stuff on the other thread will be repeated here.
8 Nov 2012, 14:34 pm
I’m appalled by Keo’s sudden change of heart. Just a mere search through the archives and you will see him calling us dinosaurs for our labelling Meyer biased for his continued selection of Steyn and Kirchner! Why now are you retracting that Keo?
Its provincial bias, plain for all to see as is his selection of Kirchner. Its not a colour issue with Meyer…but it looks that way now doesn’t it.
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