“Make a public apology or we won’t speak to you again.”
That is the ultimatum that the Springbok team have issued Australian TV company Fox Sports after coach Peter de Villiers was called a clown during the company’s rugby programme, The Rugby Club.
Former Wallaby hooker Brendan Cannon said in a discussion on Wednesday night about the upcoming Test between the Springboks and Wallabies that De Villiers is a clown.
“I can’t believe that senior players like John Smit and Victor Matfield allow themselves to be controlled by this guy. He is a clown. He surely does not coach the team,” said Cannon.
A number of De Villiers’s most controversial statements from the past were mentioned, with each panel member belittling him.
Springbok spokesperson Anthony Mackaiser said that it was decided then that enough is enough.
“I spoke to the executive producer of the programme and we are demanding an immediate apology. They have no right to talk about our coach that way and we view it in poor taste and a very negative light,” he said.
Mackaiser said they had informed the station that no Springbok player or member of management would speak to Fox until Cannon has apologised on air.
If Cannon does not do it, no interviews will be possible in the build-up programmes prior to Saturday’s Test.
Fox are the local affiliate of Newscorp, who owe the TV rights for the Tri-Nations and as such have certain preferential rights. One of them is interviews in the build-up to a Test.
As in New Zealand, De Villiers is a popular topic in the local media, who are painting the Boks as a bunch of undisciplined bullies.
A report in The Australian earlier in the week referred to De Villiers as an “extremely unpredictable man”.
The attack follows several similar attempts by TV stations and newspapers in New Zealand to belittle De Villiers.
His relationship with the international media on tours has never been good, but the comment by Cannon is the straw that broke the camel’s back.
Meanwhile, Rugby Heaven columnist Greg Growden has described the Bok coach as rugby’s own Richard Pryor. He described De Villiers as a “part-time Springbok coach and full-time comedian”.
@ biltongbek:
I have to agree with Biltong. The Boks have made a name for themselves as being a hard physical side, which I’m sure, is what we love about our team, and dare I say, the rest of the world. I hope that never change. It’s cheap shots and dirty play that’s given us a bad name, not or physicality, which is probably why ref’s feel they need to stamp down on such behaviour….even before the game started. I also feel that all teams have received bad decisions in the past, and that we should be careful to start claming that the ref’s are biased. Sometimes the ref is just an idiot, and the team at the receiving end is just unlucky. Other times you have northern hemisphere refs blowing southern hemisphere games…they interpret the law slightly different than what we are used to. Some teams adjust to this quicker than others. All this complaining is making us look like a bunch of sore loosers….just another white armband saga. Common, we are better than this.
Fcuking cheats !!!
blouste @ 32
moenie so vloek nie
tighthead sê dit wys jou karakter!! 😀
@ Ashley:
Ash I understand your point about our own view of reality and I do not see any sense in getting into a technical discussion about perception.
However I find it hard to believe that anybody with common sense can defend the words that come out of PDV’s mouth.
We do not need to be loyal or patriotic to the extent that we are blinded by the obvious inability of this man to grasp the need to be carefull and measured in what he says, in order that he projects the best result for the image of SA rugby, and the mental preparedness of the team.
Why do you try to defend the obviously undefensible?
hot off the press…………
Adnaan Mohamed
Brisbane – Former Wallaby hooker Brendan Cannon has apologised to Springboks coach Peter de Villiers for calling him a clown.
VIDEO: Aussies mock Div
“I hereby wish to publicly apologise to Bok coach Peter de Villiers for comments I made about him on The Rugby Club TV programme on Wednesday evening. I am sorry if I offended him,” Cannon said on Fox Sports on Friday.
The Springbok team issued an ultimatum to TV company Fox Sports to make a public apology after Cannon called the Bok coach a clown during the company’s rugby programme, The Rugby Club, on Wednesday.
Cannon apologised live on Fox Sport on Friday and will apologise again when The Rugby Club is aired again on Wednesday night.
According to Springbok media manager Anthony Mackaiser, the management and the players were very unhappy with the derogatory statements made about the coach and demanded an apology.
“The producer of the programme confirmed in an email that the comments made were unacceptable. An apology and retraction was made by Cannon. The coach is happy with this and as far as we are concerned the matter is now done and dusted ,” Mackaiser said at the team hotel on Friday.
The sad fact is, everyone still thinks he is a clown, now they just believe he is a sensitive clown.
Nou as Canon reg is dan gaan n kanibaal seker reken “Smaak snaaks” as hy n hap van snorre gevat het.
tighthead @ 34
funny isnt it
that
in an age where we bemoan this need to be politically correct in almost everything we do
we
ask of others to be exactly that … politically correct!!
bitterbek @ 37
everyone?
since when do you decide what i should think?
@ Ashley:
You are confused Ash!!
Nobody is asking him to be politically correct.
We are asking him to act like an intelligent coach who understands how to deal with the media and project a professional image of a modern day manager.
He is obviously not capable of this, and has become his own worst enemy by continually giving the media ammunition against him, yet seems too stupid to understand that simple point, by acting belligerent and self righteous.
Simply put he does not have the tools for the position and has proved this over and over again.
hmmm, seems like brendon cannon have a quite a following in sarugby at the moment …. especially under those sooooooooo worried about the image of sarugby projected to the world (if anyone can tell me where this image is projected, i’ll go and polish it for you)
..
just a shame that the same supporters forget that out image was tainted by the same brendon cannon a few years ago when after a match against the boks he showed off his injuries and commented “that it was like being attacked by wild animals”!!
@ Ashley:
Once again you miss the point.
It is not about Cannon.
He can be the biggest arsehole in the world, it does not matter to us.
It is about how OUR coach behaves, not anybody else.
And as for image building, it is important, as we are World Champions and should conduct ourselves with grace and humilty.
tighthead @ 43
“missing the point”
“confused”
“cant understand how someone with common sense” etc etc
come-on tighthead, why put me in such categories?
…
😀 anyway … yes, i also wish pdv would be like any other, as you put it, professional modern day manager … but guess what? dont think he would want to fit into someone elses mould …. and i have a lot of respect for him just for that!!
Gents why dont you two just agree to disagree 🙂
I am also shocked at the things Divvie says but then on the udda hand…..I have a soft spot for him and I am sure he and the players get on marvelously and he has a good rappor going with them, think he is a major peoples person!!!
Also have very mixed feelings about this one….and of course I do not agree with all his selections and game plans etc but then he has the absoluut wonderful extremely intelligent input of Tricky dicky and gert die Goue Seun so…….
hellooooooooooooooooooooo tripples
trips @ 45
hehehehe
ag dont worry. we already agreed to do exactly that (agree to disagree ie)
@ Ashley:
Ash buddy, you are looking for whatever you can find to credit him!!
It’s one thing to be your own man and another to be an ignorant fool about it.
The fact that he is an ignorant fool is however not a problem and is nobodies business.
The fact that he is an ignorant fool AND the Bok coach is a problem!!
I am sure PDV is a god guy with good intentions, but seriously there is nothing to defend about him being Bok coach.
It is a highly specialized and public position, which very few people are equipped to handle, including PDV.
It’s okay Ash you can just admit this, you don’t have to defend him when he is stuffing up!!
Ashley, it seems you like to take things literally.
I’ll rephrase, if you read the Nz and Australian newspapers and listen to their media, they percieve him as a clown, ditsy, having foot in mouth disease, you can call it whatever you want.
And no, I don’t know of any South African that is a fan of Cannon.
When making a statement in general, noone is saying you think that way, perhaps you should ask yourself when reading a generalised comment, “if the shoe fits, wear it”, if it doesn’t then clearly it is not intended for you to be part of that perception.
@ Tripples:
Hey Tripples, just chewing the fat with my buddy Ash!!
tighthead @ 47
you’ll be amazed to know that we’re actually coming from the same point of view (that we wished he’d handle the press more proffessional) … its just when going from there that we differ 😀
tighthead @ 49
exactly 😉
bitterbek @ 48
i dont wear shoes 😯
This Aussie called Cannon still apologised now has’nt he ?
That means Bokke 1 Aussie “think I can say whatever I want about whoever” commentator 0
Why apologise when you are’nt at fault ?
its like brotherly love guys…
If PDV is a clown, that is fine…but he is OUR clown and its not up to the opposition to make that sort of comment otherwise we will moer them, figuratively or literally. We must do our talking on the rugby field. I am not (and have never been) inordinately concerned about what other teams, or other peoples for that matter, have to say about our rugby team or about South Africans. My standard reply to the many Aussies and Kiwi’s and even Englishmen that I talk rugby with, when they state “South Africans are very physical and aggressive” is “whats wrong chaps…cant you take the punch!!”
i say fukem, the whole lot of them that make derogatory comments and the vast majority of our opposition fans and players who are complimentary about our team and enjoy rugby for the sake of rugby, I say welcome to the group and dammit you also have a great team!!! This is a storm in a teacup.
However if the players raised this, I see Victors hand in it, he is inclined to moan a lot and he must stop, although it is often said you cant teach an old dog new tricks. What worries me is where is John Smit during all this….is he losing interest?
@ 4man:52 – Howzit 4man. Good post and had a good laugh there but agree.
Think it must have been John and Victor saying no to the interview if PdV never got a apology.
Saw that programme last night and they sort of made a crack about John and Victor for playing under PdV. So think both of them made a stand together, by being mentioned by Cannon. Well my feeling.
Anyhow like you say we must just do the talking on the field tomorrow and go out and win it. Have to win tomorrow we do we still stand a chance of winning this tourney if we win all our home games. Feel the Aussies could beat the ABs in Melbourne next week. They do then we in with a chance. Remember they have to face us in all their games at altitude… LOL.
52 @ 4man:
Exactly !!! Well said.
Eish…
No thread for Sharks game…
@ Blouste:55 – Blouste, Damn dstv only showing the WP game. Really thought they would show both games. Why we pay this channel for sometimes their useless service I have no idea. Could easy have shown both games. Was looking forward to seeing the Sharks game.
Anyhow good luck for our Boks tomorrow.
Whats the big deal?
As an outsider I heard that John Smit and Victor Matfield run the show anyway!!!!
What does PDV do except ‘squeak’ at press conferences!!
Then what would I know being the ‘quota’ English person!
🙂
I can see you looking in…….
Dare you to say ‘Hello’……!!!
rugbybal wrote:
Sorry rugbybal, just read your earlier post now due to timezone differences. Indeed, I take issue with your suggestion I’ve ‘turned into a real ozzie’. Indeed, I’ve never professed to be anything else and like you, I’m extremely proud of my heritage. Fair enough, my view doesn’t reflect yours? Well and good, we both have that right.
@ Old Griquas 14 in Sydney:
No worries mate. I was afriad you were going to take, me saying you turned into a real Ozie,as an insult. Most people would, but glad you didn’t. Just as a matter of interest, who will you be rooting for today?
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