As you read this, Bakkies Botha is back in Pretoria, leaving behind him New Zealand and the next 3 games of the Rugby World Cup which ends on the 23 October.
Cause: “Achilles Tendon injury”.

Bakkies Botha is an unquestioned South African patriot and consummate rugby professional, but you have to wonder, or just be a little bit prickled into thinking, are we seeing patriotism colliding with professionalism here?

Put yourself in Bakkies Botha’s position.

You essentially are in the twilight of your rugby playing career, in which you have approximately 3 years left in which to absolutely lucratively harvest your single greatest asset, your rugby skills, reputation and performance, for the highest price you can get.

Two years ago Botha lost out to the Blue Bulls in a labour dispute in which he already then wanted to be released from his professional playing contract, to pursue the big money overseas, as in France.

So you sign a 3 year contract with Toulon’s owner Mourad Boujellal in February 2011 for R7.4m a year for 3 years. This deal however, has some tough clauses for Boujellal is no beginner to signing world class players for top dollar but getting full value for his money. It so happens that Joe van Niekerk is Captain of Toulon and even Johnny Wilkinson has signed with Toulon, but now back to Bakkies Botha’s contract.

For starters Bakkies knew in February 8 months ago, that he has to be on site on the 1st November and you can be rest assured an absolute boiler plate condition of the contract is that Bakkies has to pitch up for work ‘fully fit’ and ‘ready to do duty – as in play from the get-go’, if he wants to earn his R7.4m a year – as Toulon’s competitive season begins that very weekend.

So just how much influence did Bakkies Botha’s contract have on his early exit and departure from NZ?

It had to be a huge factor and consideration for Bakkies and I think it escalated into a huge loss for South Africa’s Springboks on Sunday, as we needed Bakkies’s ‘baksteen’ and Iron Man presence.

Bakkies Botha’s absence was a missing mongrel component which South Africa lacked. The team did played well – but not as a team well enough to own the Webb Ellis Trophy for a 2nd time. The Springboks needed more of an assassin and an enforcer, to neutralise that bloody good Wallaby fetcher and Man Of the Match – David Pocock. He is damn good.

He single handedly robbed South Africa of the Semi Finals and Bakkies would have shut that thief in the night, down. Listen Pocock’s performance was Bryce-Enhanced, the TV replays are not forgiving and in fact they are pretty well damning of the refereeing competency of Bryce Lawrence and that of the RWC Refereeing panel.

Some time ago I opined that Bryce Lawrence needed to be sponsored by Spec-Savers as the poor man and that of his assisstant referees was nothing short of shocking on Sunday.
And this at rugby’s show piece that is supposed to be the best of the best of rugby, at an event worth hundreds of millions of Rands. And an inferior performance like that of Bryce Lawrence’s refereeing a quarter final, quite simply sabotages everything good about the 2011 Rugby World Cup, so no wonder you get the quasi cop out that we witnessed with Bakkies.

So Bakkies Botha, head to Toulon, make that big time cash, as we will always be your fans and love the fact that the French need you and Joe van Niekerk so much they will whip out the big green for you.

Roll on the Heineken Cup for our end of year rugby inventory!