Now it’s personal: New Zealand and South African coaches trade words before Tri Nations
With the much-anticipated opening of the Tri Nations rugby tournament under way, tournament favourites the New Zealand All-Blacks and the South African Springboks’ coaches have already started a bit of a war of words, showing these two teams can’t wait for the opportunity to tear into each other.
It started when All-Black coach Graham Henry and his captain Richie McCaw seemed to suggest the Springboks were less well-rounded rugby players, saying they “played less rugby” than the All-Blacks. What the Kiwis were suggesting was that the South Africans relied more on set plays to win matches rather than simply outplaying their opponents over 80 minutes. But it didn’t sit well with Peter de Villiers, the South African coach.
"Graham Henry is a good coach, but he's like me, he has a big mouth."
"I don't understand what they mean by playing less rugby. We all play for 80 minutes. And we are never in a comfort zone. We try to improve week by week, even if it's just by half a percent."
Psychological warfare?
The back-and-forth might just be an attempt by one side to gain a bit of a mental edge over the other. The two teams have been picked by bookmakers to be in a virtual tie for who is most likely to win the three team tournament, with Australia’s Wallabies lagging behind by a fair pace.
Another All-Black coach, Steve Hansen, said he thought de Villiers and Henry were trying to get inside the other team’s heads, but not before firing his own shot at de Villiers.
"He's got an upside down mouth. He's one of those unfortunate people born with an upside down smile,” said about de Villiers. When speaking about the comments back and forth though, he seemed so downplay it and suggested it was nothing personal. “
It's just mind games from two very astute coaches."
De Villers fired back that the Springboks are no longer afraid of the no. 1 ranked rugby team in the world, and given that some odds-makers and pundits are beginning to favour his team, his confidence might not be misplaced.
"We are no longer in awe of the All Blacks. We respect them still, we will still lose some games to them but they will lose against us as well. We fear no one, but we respect everybody. We have found the strong characters in our squad and we have set high goals. In fact I'm quite afraid of the goals we have set," said de Villiers.
A long rivalry
For the two best rugby nations in the world, this is just one other step in a long rivalry. The South Africans stunned the New Zealanders at last year’s Tri Nations cup when they rolled over the All-Blacks to win three games and lose none. Pressure will be on the Springboks to perform well, but with two games on the road in New Zealand, the Kiwis may have more to prove and show they can keep their no.1 ranking.
The Springboks have won their past two matches on New Zealand soil, meaning both sides will go into this match with a lot to prove and a lot to lose. How well New Zealand does in its two matches at home will likely determine the winner of the tournament.
During the Apartheid era, the rivalry between the teams was fierce and often racially tinged, as the all-white Springboks contrasted with the All-Blacks, who often have a team with a significant representation of Maori. While the Maori no longer face the same discrimination they did when playing in South Africa, it seems that no matter what the circumstances, both teams want desperately to win against the other.
Tags: