Former Springbok coach Nick Mallett says he is concerned that national coach Heyneke Meyer’s philosophy could impede player creativity.
Mallet had a lot to say this week here is some of it.
“That is the only thing I’m slightly worried about with the Heyneke regime – his mantra is execution above innovation,” Mallett told reporters in Johannesburg yesterday.
“So he is not looking for innovative players, he’s looking for people who execute well.
“If we are going to do a move that will take the centre into the midfield, we are going to do it so well, at such pace, that it doesn’t matter if the opposition know about it – we will get across the advantage line and we will dominate that impact zone.”
He said South Africans should not underestimate the Roses under the tutelage of Stuart Lancaster.
“They are a very exciting team, and a lot of South Africans disparage Northern Hemisphere rugby but, coaching wise, they are really well coached at their clubs,” he said.
“A lot of their clubs get overseas coaches, and so they get New Zealand, Australian and sometime South African input.”
Mallett was among the favourites to land England’s top coaching job but was pipped by Lancaster who was the country’s interim coach during the Six Nations.
“It is just the physicality I think that will be the question mark around this team and whether they will match the South Africans’ physicality,” Mallett said.
“It is going to be a really exciting series and I wouldn’t be surprised if they sink a game.”
He said he had sympathy for Meyer who had only one week to prepare his side for the first Test against England in Durban on June 9.
Mallett felt the time constraints could see Meyer revert to his tried and tested Bulls model and he expected a number of Bulls players to form the core of the Bok team.
“If you think about the time he [Meyer] spent with the Bulls, you shouldn’t be surprised if it is a Bulls-dominated type of side,” said Mallett.
“That’s why he mentioned Victor Matfield and why he is talking about Fourie du Preez as his captain, and I am convinced that is what he will do.”
He said Meyer would stick to his accurate kicking game and Springbok scrumhalf Du Preez would be a crucial proponent of his plans.
“You have to have the best box kicker or tactical kicker in world rugby for him to be successful and that is why he is banking on Fourie; also, Fourie knows his personality,” Mallett said.
“I think it is going to be a very conservative team and a conservative game plan.
“He’ll be happy to win 25-18 with a handful of penalties, a drop goal and a breakaway try.”
Mallett said fans should not expect enterprising backline play from the Boks in the first three Tests under Meyer.
He did, however, feel the national side was in good hands with Rassie Erasmus in charge of the technical side and Meyer taking care of the players’ commitment to the national cause.
“Going into this Test knowing that you’ve got Rassie analysing their line-outs, their attacking strategy and their kicking and knowing you’ve got Heyneke with his assistants making sure about the players’ focus,” he said.
“He [Meyer] is very good at making sure players understand what playing for the Bulls or for South Africa means to him and to them and what it means to the rest of the country.”
– SAPA
Andries Bekker has a long way to go before he can be talked about in the same breath as South Africa’s greatest lineout specialist, Victor Matfield.
According to former Springbok and Italian coach Nick Mallett, ahead of the Test series against England.
While Bekker has been touted as the heir apparent for Matfield’s position in the national team, he and other top Boks came under sharp criticism from Mallett, who is regarded as one of the top coaches in world rugby.
Talking about the team he believed current Bok coach Heyneke Meyer would select for the England series, Mallett said he believed Bekker had a lot of work to do to be a top international forward.
“Bekker is nowhere near as good as Matfield in the lineouts. Bekker needs to listen to Matfield – then he will become better,” Mallett explained.
“Because he is big, he thinks he can win every ball whereas Matfield thinks about the lineouts. Matfield will not throw one ball to himself if there is a danger of losing it or if there is a blocker there. He will call a ball everywhere else except for himself if it means his team winning the game.
“Bekker, however, will call on himself and if he loses one, he will call another one because he is upset he lost one. Then if it happens again he will blame the hooker for not throwing into the lineout high enough.
“Teams can only put two blocks and you as the lineout reader need to see where they are and that’s where Matfield was absolutely unbelievable.”
Former Springbok and Italy coach Nick Mallett says players plying their trade overseas should not be picked for the Boks.
He told Beeld those players aren’t keen on the hard, physical game here in South Africa and are seeking and easy way out to make money.
He hinted at scrumhalf Fourie du Preez, who is a strong candidate to lead the Boks, when he spoke about the upcoming three-Test series against England.
“The guys that go play overseas, especially Japan, often see it as an easy pay-day and they know they won’t suffer like they would had they played here in South Africa.
“The rugby there is much easier and calmer in comparison to the guys who play Super Rugby week in, week out.
“I feel really sorry for Heyneke (Meyer, Bok coach). To play against England a week after two derby matches (Bulls-Stormers, Lions-Sharks) is no joke,” said Mallett.
Somehow someone got Nick,s number and gave it to all his journalist buddies. This is just a few articles, there are many more all around the press.
Mallett still doing things his way
June 1 2012 at 12:11pm
By Kevin McCallum
In August 2000, I received a phone call from Alex Broun, the then Springbok media man. He told me to hold the line, someone wanted to talk to me. It was Nick Mallett, the Springbok coach, who, just a few days before had watched his team beat the All Blacks 46-40 in a maelstrom of a match at Ellis Park.
Mallett wanted to tell me how much he had enjoyed a column I had written in the Saturday Star on the day of the Test. It was a nonsense column, a list of flippant suggestions as to what the Springboks might say when asked, “Why did the chicken cross the road?” (Sample answers: Robbie Fleck: “Just cross the f****** road, you chicken f***!” Percy Montgomery: “The chicken crossed the road?”). In what had been a tough season for Mallett, he said the column had given him a good laugh as the pressure on him became increasingly intense. He would have just one more match after the Ellis Park game, being forced out by the then Sarfu under the trumped-up charge of criticising Test ticket prices.
Almost 12 years, a spell in Europe with Stade Francais and Italy later, Mallett has now settled into the role of analyst with SuperSport, but he has lost none of his brutal honesty and talent as a raconteur, either on screen or to a group of rugby people. On Wednesday this week, as part of SuperSport’s build-up to the England tour, Mallett spoke his mind on Heyneke Meyer (wonderful coach, but perhaps a bit conservative) and England (they may grab a win on tour). It could have been Mallett as the England head coach to South Africa.
“In Heyneke and Rassie we are very, very lucky in having two very good coaches. Rassie, from a technical point of view, is outstanding, and Heyneke, from a personality, man management point of view, is exceptional. We’ve got the world’s greatest exponent of learning other people’s calls in Rassie.
“There isn’t a single coach in the world who goes into as much detail in working out how the opposition call, and what they mean. He’s absolutely believable at that.”
Erasmus was the same as a player, said Mallett, and, strangely enough, there was no better example of this than in Mallett’s last match as Springbok coach, in Durban.
“Rassie was the first player who came up to me and said, ‘Listen, Nick, I’ve been studying the way the Australians get out of their half. They throw to (John) Eales at four, they bring Jeremy Paul down on the peel-off, they then pass behind the back of (Owen) Finnegan to (Toutai) Kefu, who takes it up. They set up the ruck in the middle of the field and they’ve got a left-footed kicker in (Chris) Latham or right-footed in (Stephen) Larkham to kick out.’ We had our defensive system, and Rassie said, ‘You always want me to tackle Kefu, but I want to go for the interception’. I covered it by telling Joost to make sure he would tackle Kefu if the intercept didn’t work.
“It worked unbelievably. We’re in their 22, their line-out, throw goes to Eales, around came Paul, pass to Kefu, interception by Rassie Erasmus, try, under the bloody poles! The Aussies all dived on his back. The question (to the TMO) ‘Is there any reason I can’t award the try’, only came in afterwards. The question was, ‘Did you see the ball grounded?’ Of course they couldn’t see it grounded, there were Australians all over it. Latham was the last man up, he actually pats Rassie on the head and says, ‘Well done’.
“We didn’t get the try, lost the match 19-18 and it was ‘cheers Nick’.”
“One of my favourite images in my coaching career was watching 20 000 England fans walking out of a packed Stade de France at the (1999) World Cup quarter-final when Jannie de Beer kicked all those drop goals. I loved waving them ‘bye’ as they walked past … we need the South Africans to buy tickets and …”
“Are you allowed to talk about tickets these days?” I chirped Mallett. He laughed. “Absolutely! Saru weren’t too happy when I did it years ago, but I did it anyway.”
Nick Mallett – still doing things his way. This time on your television sets.
Go on Nick you are doing wonderfully well.
If I am a rugby player and have to read these kind of things what he said about me I will just despise him. And he deserves it.
But now some people reckon he will become a hero among rugby players. Go on Nick, rugby players of today will see right through you for what you really are.
But I have an idea he is going to prove 12 years ago was the right decision.
I love watching and listening to Nick.
He has the balls to criticise when it’s due, not like the majority of the toothless prats on SS who seem shit scared of losing their gray train tickets if they criticise SARU or the Boks or whoever.
Brutal honesty. (Yeah even IRO the Lions!!!!!!!!!!) I love it.
6@ Scrumdown:
Yes enjoy hearing Nick speak the truth on dstv. About time we have someone that can say what needs to be heard. Would really enjoy to see Nick and Campo on at the same time. Now that would be interesting.
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