Rassie talks on senior player development and acquisition

Published 1 October 2009 | By Isigidi

From Official WP Site

As senior professional coach, within the bounds of WP Rugby policy, as determined by the President and Executive Committee and the Chairman and the Board, I am responsible for on-field success of our teams. Core to success is our ability to identify, develop and nurture talent to ensure we have a pool of athletes capable of achieving success. Equally, where we are thin or in need of experience or specific skills, to identify and buy in that requirement with the approval of WP Rugby. I am very pleased to be able to say that the structures now in place at WP, from the Toyota School of Excellence (that identifies and prepares elite squads at U12, U15 and U17 age group levels for participation in relevant national rugby weeks), through our Institute in Stellenbosch and our junior U19 and U21 teams, are excellent. The results of all of these teams speak for themselves. (All junior WP teams went to the finals of their respective national weeks, with two winning, the WP U19 team is unbeaten, the U21´s are 3rd on the log with a game in hand and the senior team is in the running for a home semi.)

At junior levels we have a large pool of talent and the trick is to identify and pull through the best to ensure that at a senior level we have contracted the best players that we truly believe are going to make it. A huge amount of work and effort goes into this by many committed people and the results simply don´t lie. The simple reality is that we cannot offer everyone we develop contracts and it is not fair to keep players and not play them simply for the sake of keeping them away from other provinces.

 What is important in terms of home grown talent, is to spot and endeavour to retain the best (Juan de Jongh, JC Kritzinger, De Kock Steenkamp, Martin Muller, Dewaldt Duvenhage, and JJ Engelbrecht are all youngsters currently getting exposure at senior levels). Some athletes will inevitably slip through the net and some, like Francois Hougaard for instance, despite serious efforts, one is simply unable to retain.

In fact, we will actively look to develop players by allowing them to sign short term agreements with smaller unions, for example Boland and Griquas, where they can get game time they need to develop. This often with a signed agreement that should the player succeed, WP has an option on the player after that period. This whilst all the time endeavouring to ensure we have contracted the two best senior and a junior player available to us in each position.

On occasion, at senior team level, we will look to foreigners to provide mentoring roles to young athletes, to bring new ideas and insights and to fill gaps where we have an obvious and immediate need. Chris Jack and Tony Brown are great examples of athletes who benefitted the team and our young athletes enormously. In addition, we like all other professional sporting teams, will look to buy in star athletes ( Bryan Habana is an example at senior level and the SA U20 flyhalf Lionel Cronje another at junior level) , experience (Frikkie Welsh) or specific players for specific needs (Matt To´omua).

I remain cognisant of the passion, history and unique culture of rugby in this great province and, like any senior professional coach, I am striving to ensure that my tenure here results in professional, positive, winning teams that all are proud of. Balance and perspective remain crucial.

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