Following recent speculation regarding Butch James, Bath Rugby have confirmed that Butch still has another two seasons of his contract to run with the Club, but admit they have been approached by Natal Sharks.
“Butch still has two more seasons of his contract left to run,” said Bath Rugby’s Chief Executive Nick Blofeld. “He has said to us that he would like to play for South Africa again and we would, of course, love to see him do that, but believe he can do so from Bath having done so in the past.
“Butch is still very much a key member of Bath Rugby’s squad and will inevitably continue to attract interest from other clubs, as he is a world class talent.”
Butch James is due to return to match action in the next few weeks, following a shoulder injury sustained against Worcester Warriors on 20th February.
Butch James is too much of an injury risk!
And he will be back-up fly at best….
You know who the SA No 1 and No 2 flyhalves are at present…. Morné Steyn and Jaques-Louis Potgieter…. yip, that’s right, the Bulls No 1 and No 2 in the position!!
Steyn moves beyond ‘robot’
2010-03-04 09:02Email | Print
Morne Steyn (File)
Comment: Rob Houwing, Sport24 chief writer
Cape Town – Conservative thinkers might have branded it a moment of madness: I preferred to view it as confirmation that Morne Steyn has come of age as a “flair” player.
It was the first half – a mostly forgettable one from their point of view – of the Bulls’ frantic-paced Vodacom Super 14 match against the Waratahs at Loftus last Saturday, one which had seen them trail 17-0 early on, then again 26-10, before the teams switched ends with the Australians a less worrisome nine points to the good.
With the defending champions strangely being pinned back deep in their own territory, the Springbok flyhalf suddenly, impulsively opted to take a daring “dab” 22m drop-out, toward inside-centre colleague Wynand Olivier.
Perhaps taken aback by this audacity at a time when things were already dangerously higgledy-piggledy for the Bulls, Olivier could not collect it cleanly and the ball was turned over by the Waratahs, imperilling the home team’s try-line once again although they got off the hook on that occasion.
Rash? Badly-timed? Maybe, but you also sensed somehow that the Morne Steyn of 2010 is an increasingly more adventurous and self-confident animal, prepared to “have a go” if he thinks a move is on, regardless of field position or stage on the scoreboard clock.
And all strength to his arm for that.
I used to view the clean-cut 25-year-old with moderate admiration more for his metronomic, often formulaic kicking skills out of hand and at the posts, than for any marked inclination toward self-expression and daring.
I believe we are seeing the last strings being tied on a complete package now, and it is exciting … already so for the table-topping, free-scoring Bulls, and probably also to the deep benefit of the Springboks later in the year.
Most encouragingly, Steyn was not fazed by his failed gesture of unorthodoxy and, as the Bulls clinically closed out the game in an altogether more satisfying second half by them, he was at it again – this time with the desired result.
It was his deft little “banana chip” close to the tiring Waratahs’ line that led to substitute Jacques-Louis Potgieter getting in elegantly for the final Bulls try beneath the posts: a move very reminiscent of Carlos Spencer when he was at his flamboyant heyday in an All Blacks or Blues jersey.
Various other aspects of Steyn’s evolving attacking game also shone through against the Sydney-based outfit, though, including his long- and skip-passing, an aspect his exemplary “nine and 12” at either of his shoulders – Fourie du Preez and Olivier respectively – have also excelled at in the early stages of 2010.
It goes some way to explaining, perhaps, why the Bulls have been finding it easier than most thus far to get over the advantage line decisively and bring their whippets in wider positions very strongly into play.
And all this awakening as an open-play entertainer has been accompanied by ongoing, absolutely unerring success from Steyn in the personal points-accumulation department.
He goes into a bye weekend for the Bulls sitting high and handsome atop the Super 14 points chart with 77 (significantly including three tries) from three rounds: an average of over 25 points per game. He is 14 points clear of the Chiefs’ Stephen Donald in second.
You have to think that, even if his strike rate may come down a tad on the Bulls’ overseas travels and they may opt for a slightly tighter game, Steyn will be in with a shout this year at eclipsing Dan Carter’s season-record 221 points in 2006, when the Crusaders landed the trophy.
Carter played in 14 of their 15 matches in that campaign, averaging 15.11 points a game.
It is early days and much can still happen, but with their maximum haul of 15 log points thus far, the Bulls going all the way to 15 games this season, including the two knockout matches at the end, must be a strong likelihood.
Any takers for how many points Steyn, fitness permitting, may manage in that instance?
He sometimes lists the 2004 action thriller Man on Fire, starring Denzel Washington, among his favourite movies.
I can think of a certain rugby flyhalf who is on fire right now, too …
And the third best fluhalf is Francios Brummer. The no 1 , and 3 of the Bulls
1,2 and 3 😆 !!!!
wat is ‘n fluhalf dWeePer? 😆
Allo mense…Jis julle klomp bulle klink al nes die Lions supporters…glo wragtig al julle eie strontstories!…lol
Polla…
Ons ry die golf man…
Siende dat die “usual surfer boys” nie reg kom nie 😆
eish how the sharks could have done with a butch james right now
ai this be true polla 😆
and a fransie steyn and barritt and and and and 😆
sharky-forever
STOP !!! You will fall into some kind of depression… 😆
Jeez this is a great site to blog on. Went for a walk down memory lane and was not at all surprised by the much of a muchness there. Those in the know will understand. Had to say it.
Yes, it is difficult not to feel smug… hope it does not come back to bite me in the ass soon…
…but who remember the horrific fighting and name calling at Voldy between Ruan Pienaar (Sharks) supporters and Morné Steyn (Bulls) supporters during the Lions series (not forgetting the ugly parralels drawn between John Smit and Gary Botha etc,)
Lets hope we learn from that and not have this type of bickering and (speaking to myself) smugness about players proving themselves and other players being shown up.
Hokaai – I always enjoy good banter but when it gets personal and out of hand, it becomes ugly. I have never seen any of it here.
12 – Howzit Sharky, Yes, how we could have done with Barritt, Butchie and FRANS STEYN. How much better would we be looking now? How did we let those players go? Damn Sharks were fools really.
Heard that Butchie actually wanted a contract with Sharks for another 2 years after 2007 and they turned him down. How true this is Have no idea.
Now Butchie is really injury prone though. Still would have had him for last year and this year. Though he was injured for long periods last year and this.
16 – Irish how you mate?
Irish well done to Ireland on beating England. Should never have gone with England on my bru. Should have stuck with my team I support in the 6 Nations which is Ireland. Just thought home advantage. Well I got that wrong.
16@ Oirish – The class of blogger here… and the nature of this blog will never allow for anything but good gamesmanship and good banter.
Lack of control elsewhere has resulted in the dangerous habit of unwanted mudslinging.
I mean, look at Polla here, he has a good laugh at us, about the Bulls fortunate flyhalf situation, takes a quick friendly bite at us and we all smile about it… this is as it should be, this is actually the natural order of things!
amen gbs
Hiya all. Been off and on all day – busy but had to come in and say hi! Went travelling but it wasn’t worth the drive. 😆
gepraat van FH. Ek sien Pienaar is uiteindelik terug op SH. Soos iemand aan die einde van laas naweek gese het, Ruan Pienaar se ligaams houding= EK IS NIE ‘N FH!!!
Hoop eerlik waar die Sharks wen die naweek. Dit is nou net nie meer snaaks nie. Soos glad nie. As hulle die naweek verloor het hulle nie meer ‘n kat se kans om die semi’s te maak nie.
C’mon Tjarks!
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