All Blacks coach Graham Henry, still struggling to come to terms with his team’s recent 0-2 series whitewash in South Africa, feels that the Springboks’ winning ways are “too boring” and that the rules need another overhaul to make the game more entertaining.
Speaking ahead of the All Blacks’ crucial Tri-Nations Test against the Wallabies in Sydney on Saturday, Henry described the game as a poor spectacle and needs more emphasis on running the ball rather than kicking. Henry said the sport needed attention by the International Rugby Board (IRB). The New Zealand coach’s comments come after Tri-Nations’ Tests this year have been largely decided by goal-kicking. South African flyhalf Morné Steyn has been the tournament’s most influential figure so far.
He has kicked 18 penalties in three Tests – to ensure victories over the All Blacks in Bloemfontein (28-19), Durban (31-19, with Steyn scoring all 31 the Boks’ points) and Australia (29-017) in Cape Town. “The product you’re looking at needs some attention, quite frankly,” a grim-looking Henry told a media gathering in Sydney. “We, and the Australians, like to play a ball-in-hand type of rugby and enjoy playing the game,” Henry told reporters. “That’s part of the product and we think that’s important, so I guess the product’s not too great and that’s disappointing. “I think we need to have some attention on that and the people who make the laws try and improve the product, and the people involved try to improve the product.” Henry said there is an over-emphasis on kicking and the game had suffered as a result. “I know there’s been a bit of an emphasis on kicking and sides not catching particularly well, and people are trying to exploit that,” he said. “We need to think outside the square about how we can change the game so it’s more enjoyable to play and better to watch.” The IRB have trialled experimental law variations (ELVs), but did not adopt them after intense opposition from Northern Hemisphere unions last May. Wallaby coach Robbie Deans said it was unsurprising that the removal of the ELV sanctions had resulted in more kicking. “When you look back at the World Cup in 2007, it was always a possibility, particularly when you’ve got a side like South Africa, who are so able to play the game that way,” Deans said. “They essentially won the World Cup in 2007 without playing. “There is a lot of kicking but the kicking has improved as well.” Deans said the current laws needed to be given a chance through better policing by referees. “I think we’re missing the opportunity to keep people on their feet [at the breakdown],” he said. “If we do that we’ll get the benefit of the laws the way they are currently [then] it will provide more scope to play.”
Jaloerse wannabe Jan
Win ugly or lose pretty?
And thats why the Keeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee’s can’t win the WC.
Not sure but who was the main supporters of these new rules………… wasn’t it the Wallas & Ab’s?
Didn’t the SA sides play poorly in 2008 in the S14 cause they didn’t adapt to the new rules? Well…we’ve adapted now?……
Well imo it’s 6 of the one and half a dozen of the other…… all in all we have played the winning game and we can’t see people not coming to the game cause we are kicking…. in SA prople are staying away (BIL) cause of ticket prices…..
Maybe people are staying away – lost interest in NZ……cause you choke to much? Did the Bulls win the Chiefs because they kicked better?
Not sure that we would have this discussion if the Ab’s won us in SA?
We all want to see the running game but first of all we wanna win…….
So Henry and wanna be AB”s coach…imo….win and then complain…
Johannesburg – Athletics South Africa (ASA) president Leonard Chuene on Friday refused to accept any blame by his federation for the Caster Semenya gender controversy, accusing racist South Africans for the fiasco.
Semenya stunned the world last month when she won the African junior 800m title in 1:56.72 but when she arrived in Berlin last week at the World Athletics Championships, the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) requested tests be done to determine the teenager’s gender.
The test results won’t be available for at least another few weeks but in the meantime Semenya went on to win the two-lap final in a magnificent 1:55.45 on Wednesday night.
Chuene, however, said ASA had never had reason to suspect her gender despite the athlete’s muscular physique, facial hair and deep voice causing rumours to spread like wildfire.
Semenya’s father and coach have both assured in media reports that Semenya was indeed born a girl, but it’s far more complicated than a simple glance at her genitals at birth.
There is no doubt that Semenya believes she is female and was raised as a girl.
But, if she was born with both male and female chromosomes, the IAAF must then decide – after numerous tests in a complicated procedure – whether or not Semenya can run against women.
If the test results prove she is indeed entirely female, then case closed. Sort of.
Following the media frenzy that has broken out around the world, even if the test results return in Semenya’s favour, she faces possible doubters throughout her career.
And Chuene denied that ASA could have put out fires before they started if they had tested Semenya before she rose to the highest stage of international athletics.
“The responsibility of the federation (ASA) is to train children and take them to the championships,” Chuene said.
“When a child is born, the parents don’t take them for tests to find out if it is a boy or a girl, they simply look.
“The family will bring us a child and say they have given us a girl, and we accept that.
“We then prepare her, which we did, and she went on to win gold, so we’ve done our job. You tell me what more we could have done.”
Chuene went on to blame racist South Africans for writing letters to the IAAF which, he believes, triggered the governing body’s probe into Semenya’s gender.
“This is about racism,” Chuene said.
“These rumours come from South Africa. Why did these people write to the IAAF?
“These are the same people who don’t want 2010 (next year’s Fifa World Cup), the same people who bring black people down and the same people who refuse to believe that Africans can make it on the world stage.”
Hoe farked up is hierdie lot???
@trupisero – die ou is gesuip….. imo…
Bietjie van die comments op daai artikel Trupi
Lee8/21/2009 1:25 PM
I have seldom read such racist C@$%&P in my life. Who is the racist here? The girl was born the way she is, male or female, no one can be blamed for that and as far as I know ALL people that I have spoken to, black, white yellow, green, are ALL in support of her. So please do not mess with the minds of intelligent people. Get a brain Mr. you sound like an idiot!!
Bob8/21/2009 1:25 PM
This is quite a statement to make…he should be forced to prove it…or resign for racist comments…this type of racial scapegoating by a SA official is embarrassing to the entire nation. If the tests prove she is female I as a white South African will be relieved and proud.
3E8/21/2009 1:24 PM
unf(&%%(%( believable………………..of course, it MUST be racist white South Africans…am sooooo sick of this sh1t! Here I was being mad at the ozzies as they are the ones whinging…..only in SA would it be blamed on white SA racists, oh he forgot to say Apartheid as well!!!! IDIOT
Henri8/21/2009 1:24 PM
shut the f up you tw*t…please do not speak for “us” south africans!!!! Sit down and keep quiet you sour little man!! I am white and extremely happy that she won, and by 15+meters.
fed up8/21/2009 1:24 PM
chuene, you show the world that your level of education extend to the word racism and no further. you have issues with the colour of your skin! get over yourself, you want to blame the whites for everything and at every opportunity! you are running out of excuses black man! don’t take the heat off yourself, when you and ASA could have prevented this!!!
Welcome in SA8/21/2009 1:24 PM
takes one to see one… as the saying goes!
John8/21/2009 1:23 PM
Why do you always play the race card. Whenever the spotlight is on ASA for the wrong reasons, it is all of a sudden a racial issue. Just dipicts the type of leaders we have…!! Our athletes haven’t exactly covered themselves in glory at these Championships. Where are the rest of our medal contenders ASA are talking about??? Mr Chuene claims ASA have done their job, well out of a population of 50+ million we can only acheive 1 medal. I personally think its a poor showing. Having said that, well done Semenya, we are proud of you!!
tripples — ASA is nog meer moertoe as die swemspan admin.
Ag shamepies man, die arme kind….
South African 800-metre world champion Caster Semenya nearly boycotted the awards ceremony after feeling devastated by the row over her gender, her family and athletics officials said on Friday.
“She said she did not want to go on the podium, but I told her she must,” Athletics South Africa president Leonard Chuene told The Times newspaper here.
“She is not rejoicing. She (didn’t) want the medal,” said Chuene, who presented Semenya with the gold medal on Thursday.
“She told me: ‘No one ever said I was not a girl, but here (in Berlin) I am not. I am not a boy. Why did you bring me here? You should have left me in my village at home’.”
@trupisero – Ek weet, daarvan kan jy my niks sê nie, alles gaan vir ‘n bol kuk opdie oomblik
She says that one of her biggest dreams is to represent the Bulls in S14 and Currie Cup rugby.
@Ed_the_Lion – Bwahahahah 😆
@Ed_the_Lion – Myne ook 😆
@carol – 😉
@Tripples – hehehehe, you Bulls are all the same.
@Ed_the_Lion – #13 Of Course hehehehehe
But in my days, girls were not allowed to play rugby, now there is a womans wc ffs!!!!! I always wanted to play rugby, hated netball and then settled for hockey….
I do think that most of the woman rugby players can also be earmarked for gender testing hehehehehe
@Tripples – I think the person I was referring to will play in Pierre Spies’s place. That person has more muscle and looks alot stronger.
@Ed_the_Lion – Ja maar in daai dae sou ek ‘n scrummie gewees het, nou sal ek stut wees, weet net nie of dit losskop pf vasskop sal wees nie 😆
@Tripples – As dit vir die Bulle is, losskop of vasskop. Hulle sukkel in altwee daai posisies. Ek dink jy sal baie beter doen as Guthro. 🙂
@Ed_the_Lion – bwaaaaahahahahaha ek dink op die stadium sal enige iemand beter as Guthro doen
Sy probleem is hy suip te veel, dis al wat hy doen blykbaar
@Tripples – Dan like ek hom. Niks fout met ‘n dop of twee nie. Al die bulle drink en speel rugby vir ‘n lewe.
@Ed_the_Lion – nie as jy die volgende dag moet speel nie….
Ek moet nou groet Eduard….lekker naweek en lekker aand vir jou, geniet die rugby
@Tripples – Totsiens Tripples. Lekker aand en naweek vir jou ook.
@Ed_the_Lion – LoL. Think he/she would fit in better at the stormers and they been shopping around for a fast wing
Ps Henry you need to butch up and shutup
Winning is winning, and those that are not winning will no doubt complain about how the other is able to win. It could be that they play, boring rugby or high risk rugby, or even that they are able to con the ref and get the majority of those 50-50 decisions to go their way.
Springbok rugby has by an large been characterised by pressure play, we are extremely physical and force the opposition to make mistakes and then pounce on that; there is nothing wrong with that approach provided that the team is playing within the confines of the law. The beauty about international sports is that each nation will play the game according to the cultural norms that they learned it in. The AB’s instinctively learn to play the ball, the French are taught to take chances, even the Canadian team is taught to be physical at all costs. If everybody played the game like the AB’s there will be little variation and the game will not progress and we will all be here commenting about how boring it is because everyone plays the exact same way.
WRT to the whole Semenya affair, I think it is disgraceful that the IAAF and ASA have chosen to let this thing play out in public media, they need to remember that this is an 18 year old woman who has spent her entire life living and believing that she is female and now because she has come from nowhere people are asking questions. This should be going on behind closed doors with only the results being made public in the event that her medal is take away. It is also such a grey area too, especially when it comes to the determination of gender as gender can transcend your physical attributes in different societies. I don’t know what the answer is, all I know is that they are wreaking havoc on a poor woman’s life. No matter what the findings are I am sure she will want to spend the rest of her life living as a woman, even if geneticists suggest that she is not.
Henry that was really pathetic. When the AB’s were ruling the world, they played clinical rugby. Now that the Boks are in charge they are boring…shame on you.
Actually not pathic but pure sour grapes. Shame
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