Wednesday, July 30, 2008

Rugby : The new Religion

As the book of John Sith (2:15) tells us: "....and Webb Ellis picked up the ball and said, 'Let there be Ruggaz boet'......and likewise, there was rugby. And he saw that the game was lekker and so decided to make the sport big."

A friend of mine once said to me,"You know what bugger, Rugby provides that spiritual strength to all those who love it.Most men rate putting in a big hit more joyous thatn the birth of child, whilst other claim to have learnt the meaning of life after having chowed gap and crossed over for a try time". As crazy and immoral as it may sound, some people eat, walk, cry, sit, cough, drink, sleep, or talk rugby everyday of theri friggin lives.

A typical Rugga-mad Fella's weekend is made like this: Friday evening he goes home to watch the Springbok Saga on TV. That should lead him to the Currie Cup game between Cheeters and WP at 7pm. After the game, abo Naas come in as usual with their 2cent comments on the game. Him being a talkative fellow, this may take up another 45min or so till 10.30pm. The fella then decides to take a copy of the Rugby illustrated magazine with him top bed so that it can ease him to sleep. Mind you all his dreaming about is whether the Boks are winning the following day at the House of Pain. He's woken up at 8am by the build up to the All Blacks vs Boks game at 9.30am. After the game, abo Naas come thru again this time with their 3cent post-motem comments on why Frans Steyn kicked the drop goal instead of running the ball down the line.

This analysis should take another hour or so and thus leads us to the Australia vs France game at 12.30pm. Just after the Aussies game, a Currie cup game between the Sharks and Bulls kicks-off at 3pm till 5pm. After the match, the Fella is tired of watching games at home and so decides to take a walk to the Southern Sun Pub in newlands to watch the England vs Scotland game at 1700pm. Meanwhile the Fella is drinking, watching and talking rugby with the Dolsters. This would be a build up to the main game of the evening, France vs Argentina which commenses at 9pm. After the big game at 11pm, the fella and his collegues begin to decimate all the rugby matches and players that have been played that day, over shots of tequilla and more beer.

Mind you during this time, one or two phone calls have been made to his wife and on one occasion the conversation (at 1500pm) went like, "Hey babes, i'm watching rugby with the boys, see you when i'm done"...the girl responds, "so rugby is more important than, me?"....Fella's response, "No babe, just that this weekend has been hectic you know, my team was playing so eish.....but i'll make it up to u next wknd". Really........next weeknd my foot. Its still going to be the same menu.

Sunday morning, he gets up for breakfast with his wife at Mug and Bean and decides to get the Sunday times to check out the rugby update. This will take him till noon before he goes for a rugby training session with his rugby colleagues to try and take out the hang-over...... .hahahahahahahahahaha. When he gets back at 1800pm, he's tired and decides that now its time to go watch a movie with his wife and kids, of which he passes out halfway thru it.........What a shame, the life of a Rugga-Mad-Fella. The weekend is gone and now he has to go and post articles on his blogspot, www.rugga-mad-fella.blogspot.com to unwind the weekend.

This cant be life okes, this really cant be life.......

Wednesday, July 16, 2008

"What if.............?" It doesnt mean anything


It seems this player hating will never cease. I'm sorry guys I have to visit this same subject again, but I’m fed up of okes trying to discredit the Bok's sweetest victory in as many years. I'm not under the influence of any harmful substances (am in the office) but believe me or not, to me that victory was sweeter than winning the World Cup last year. I know most okes are still sour about why Henneke Meyer was not made Bok coach, but it’s late. People have hated DiV since day one; well of course why trust a black man with such a highly fancied “Bok job” .. .. bull@%$#!!! Everyone is just waiting for him to screw up so that they can say, “I told you, ……..”. People have to accept that DiV is the incumbent South African rugby coach…..yes, the first ever to win at Carisbrook in almost a century.

Well well well, this morning I read through a column on news24, posted by TANK. I regretted visiting the site that early in the morning as it got me angry and very irate the whole day. This so called rugby analyst posted an article entitled, "What if Ricky hadn't scored that try". He goes on to say that was a lucky try and that we should have lost and further criticize the coach and some players...... blah blah blah....... Don't get me wrong, criticism is good but there's some okes who've vowed to target certain individuals week in week out.

To respond to that that heading, I can also say that if Ricky hadn’t gotten that bounce, then probably he would have made 3 more breaks to score 3 tries. As much as people say it was a ‘lucky’ bounce, I could see Ricky’s hands trying so hard to the point of dislocating his wrist so as to salvage that stray ball. The level of eye contact and hands coordination under such immense pressure (as Mils was running behind him) was brilliant and I don’t think any average player would have recouped the ball. Big up Ricky, you are such a smart and intelligent player. He must do great things with those agile hands and I’m sure the ladies love them. Besides, even if it was luck, in any given situation, luck only befalls those who also work hard and put a bit of effort. Luck alone won’t pass you an exam but if you are intelligent enough to put in some effort, then you’d also be lucky to come up with a question that is familiar and ace it.

The author, TANK (no wonder he has that name- slow, sluggish and useless tank full of sh%#$) also talks about how the best scrum-half in the world is now available from injury (meaning FdP), therefore Ricky should make way as soon as FdP is match-fit……..Bull##$%!!!!! Ricky aint going nowhere. FdP should also regain match fitness and impress at Currie Cup before he can be considered for Boks. Besides, guys like FdP played were well suited under the old rules were the pack is protecting the no9 and breakdown rules are more lenient. Now under the ELVs, one has to be very quick and agile from the base of the scrum.

Ok, honestly if we live on "what ifs?" then anyone can say what ever they want. For instance in that game, i can safely say, "What if Matfield had not gotten a yellow card", or "what if Percy had scored all his conversions, then we wouldn’t have needed Ricky to score the 'lucky' try to win". "What if Dan Carter hadn't scored the 23 points he scored during that game, may be we would have won the game in the first half". "What if John Smit hadn’t been spear tackled and played on that game......” or “What if the All Blacks had won the world cup……..who knows”. Or interestingly, “What if the All Blacks where not chokers…then maybe they would have won the World Cup, thrice”. Last but not least “What if William Webb had not decided to pick up that ball and run around back then in 1823, then maybe we wont be having rugby after all”. So to hell with the “What ifs?”.

To conclude my article, I’d also want to ask a question. “What if Tank hadn’t written that article?”…..maybe I wouldn’t actually posted an article today.

Angry Coach

Monday, July 14, 2008

Stop the hating....

Seems a certain bunch of guys have recently completed their PHDs (player haters)after the weekend. Or should i call it the CHD (coach haters). I have since read a couple of articles proclaiming that the Bok victory was by chance and that the statistics show that the ABs were the better team. For instance, the AB dominated possession 58% to 42%, while they spent 66% of the game in South Africa’s territory . So whats? Who cares about the stats to make excuses? I'm sure okes are just out to take a swipe at DiV. Lies, damn lies and f*&* the statistics.

Seems after all that PdV is the Puppet master, not the Puppet that people take him for.After all, he succeeded in getting our scrum going again - in just a week. If the AB scrums were so legitimate the previous week, why did they not walk all over us on Saturday?

According to me, myself and I, Coach-Taru, the most important stats that we should be looking into is the SCOREBOARD.....and it simply reads like this, SA 30-28 NZ. This is going to remain in history for the next millenium years, not the amount of possession that the ABs had in the Bok territory. Winning test matches is about committment, steady nerves and defending. Period! Well done boys.

Who won the quarter final match between the ABs and France at last years World Cup? Damn right it was France. But no one will ask you why the ABs didnt win in that game. No one will care to remember about the so called "forward pas" or the the refs name in 10 years time..... i've actual forgotten him. So at the end of the day, "Look at the damn scoreboard", and your statistics can never let you down.

Sunday, July 13, 2008

The "House of Pleasure"

What a magnificent game! It seems the Pringboks have reclaimed their world no1 spot within a week owing to their dramatic victory over the AB at the now called 'house of pleasure' for the 1st time in almost a century.

Ricky the Hero. He won the game for the Boks following his fantastic solo effort try in what i would label, "The Momento Brillianto" of the game. His allround performance has somehow grown to consolidate his place in the team. Ricky, often criticised by some 'so called rugby intellects' showed why JW stuck with him even during his rough times. One person who is definately not happy about his brilliant performance is Fourie Du Preez, the incumbent Bok no9. He has to work extra hard hard to oust the ex-convict that escaped from Pollsmoor.

A sunday times paper has labelled the victory as a result of Jake White's game plan. Bull*&^%....absolutely bull@#$*. People should just give credit where it due and i think this time DiV got it right. For a coach to turn the team confidence from taking a drubbing in Wellington to a great victory at the so called 'house of pain' deserves a warm round of applause. JW failed in his 4 year helm as Bok coach (six macthes in NZ) but DiV did it his second test there to put his record to 4/5 test wins. The first coach to win at the House of Pain, the first to win in NZ in ten years. If you look closely in the at the records, there aint no reason to fish for records like, "first black coach to win this, or first black coach to win that...". Its all pure and legite records. Big up to DiV.

Now my worrying question is, Who is the 1st Bok Captain to win at the "house of pain"? John Smit is the Bok Captain but he never took part in that match. Matfield was given the reigns but yellow carded in the 71st minute when the Boks were losing 23-28. Then came 'captain my captain', Jean De Villiers to take over and immediately the Boks beat the ABs, with 14 men on the field. Jean deserves credit for calming the guys down and re-assuring them that they can win the game. So is it him or its Matfield? Its a tricky one.

Schalla was phenominal. That bloke plays so well that everyone seems to expect it and nothing seems unusual with his high work ethos. Its only when he plays an average game that they mention him on the papers. Luke Watson also came on in the dying minutes and he sparked the team from the back of the scrum and beautiful off-loads. Knowing him to be a great leader, he definately had a hand in calming the boys down.

Great win and sweet celebrations. Lets focus on Mat Giteau now.........

Cheers

Friday, July 11, 2008

Bring back the wagon.....

The Boks have struggled to be dominant in the scrums ever since the 20th of October 2007. Yes...exactly, besides it being my lovely girlfriend's birthday, thats the day we won the World Cup.

Our scrums have been suspect, actually terrible and we were out-scrummed by abo Italy and Wales, hectically, hayi kancane. Realistically, against the AB without Carl Heyman and Sommerville, the Boks were expected to walk over the AB front row. But it seems we have gone back to the drawing board. There is clearly no excuse. Everyone is talking about the emission of BJ Botha on tour, but to me thats nonsense and thats not were the issue is. BJ was also outscrummed by Jenkins in the Welsh test, so okes should not get too happy.

With a situation like this, if i were DiV, I'll dial +27 51 000 0000. Yes, you got it right, 051 is a area code for Bloemfontein, he might be lucky to get through coz the network is very bad, especially in the rural and isolated bushes of Verkeerdevlei, a wheat farming region. But who the f@#$ is in Bloemfontein....Yes you got it right again. A 160kg rotand and heavily obese chap who has two World Cup medals in thatched cabinet.

The great Ox should be macked into making another surprise comeback in test rugby. He is very much needed in that Boks engine room. All it takes is to bring him to the Cape and make him run up the mountains for a solid month to shed that 40kg chunk of useless fat....then we're all sorted, hundreds!!

He is "only" 35 years old and still mobile, well at least i hope so. He showed during last year the value of having expereince in the front row and ever since his departure, that gap is being felt.

He has been voted as the greatest losehead prop in the World XV team of the century, along rugby greats like Frik Du Preez, Keith Woods and John Eales. That experience needs to be rubbed off to abo Mujati and the Beast who greatly require it. So yah, lets all unleash the greatest mack daddies of this world to help bring back the scrum doctor to fix our front row niggles.

Ox for President!

Pride cometh before a fall........

With reference to my previous post, well i must say that i swallow my words and statements that i made....painfully. Usually i dont like admiting that i'm wrong but at least this time i have to be man enough and admit that we were totally outclassed by the ABs. I expected the Boks to win the match hands down due to the stats and facts that were at hand, but i guess they failed to make use of their only chance of winning in New Zealand for the 1st time in 10 years.

The "House of Pain" calleth!!!!! There shall be crying and gnashing of teeth. Not in the last 87 years have the Springboks or any other SA team won in that dungeon of a place. So what can lil' DiV do to change the unchangeable....or maybe the fact that ten Springboks who played in the last ever Test at Carisbrook in 2005 will start on Saturday, compared to four from the All Blacks will make a difference? I wonder.....and i shudder to think of what may happen at the that painful house, there's gon' be so much blood shed.

The team selection has been very suspect, but i dont want to dwell much on that subject as i'll end up losing myself. Lets concentrate with what DiV has dished out for us. I guess any team selection is going to be critised, even the World Cup winning side was critised before they lifted that William Webb Ellis plaque.

The Springboks are likely to improve from last weekend's outing, at least they got a rude awakening....just because you are world champions doesnt necesaarily mean that u'll get away with the tag....ask Federer, he'll tell a novel about it. However, i dont think that we'll pull a win at Carisbrook.......i guess 20 years from now my kids would be saying to their buddies, "We havent won in NZ in the past 30 years", because if ever there was a chance to do that, that was last weekend when the AB looked very vulnerable after a sluggish world cup early exit, as well as playing an experimental side. WE on the other hand had the most potent group of players that won the WC.

My guess is that the AB will win by 6. This time i have reversed my predictions......I guess i'm as loose and pliable as a hlamla......

Good luck to the Bokke again....i still have maximum support for my boys...PEACE!!!

Wednesday, July 2, 2008

Boks to win by six points..........

We are the current IRB World Champions...We have not lost in the last 13 games or so...We have not lost a game in 14 months...We have two IRB Player of the year stars in running on team against the AllBlacks on saturday...We have a quality side that bosts itself of over six leaders in the side ( Smit, Matfield, Jean, Juanito, Schalla, Luke, Percy, Butch to name a few)...We are the No1 Team in the world and we want to keep to that spot, and last but not least, the wealthy Richie Mccaw is not playing...so NO-ONE can stop us...Boks to win by six points this weekend.

Jake White never did it in four years. Nick Mallett was the last guy to do it - 10 years ago and now is a chance for lil' DiV to turn the tables and beat the AB in their backyard. Its not going to be easy trust me, especially in their second test at the much feared and frightening "house of pain", in Dunedin the following week. But this our chance as world champions to instil our authority and show them what we are made of. Good luck Bokkke and let hope we thump those Maoris......