The alleged sacking of Springbok backline coach Mzwandile Stick in the aftermath of the Springboks’ disastrous season last year has prompted former World Cup-winning wing Ashwin Willemse to question South African rugby’s appetite for transformation.
Willemse believes SA rugby needs to have a frank and honest conversation about transformation and the competence of black players and coaches if the game is to move forward and be successful.
Stick is the only member of the Bok management facing the axe after the national team performances last year when they lost eight out of 12 Tests. He is likely to be demoted to the SA Under-20 squad as assistant coach to another Bok management reject, Chean Roux.
Roux was given the boot at the beginning of last year’s Rugby Championship campaign after being moved from his position as technical analyst to defence coach.
The South African Rugby Union (Saru) have been playing their cards close to their chest in the aftermath of the Springbok team management’s reviews which began in December and are yet to make a public announcement on the future of Allister Coetzee and his coaching staff.
However, it has emerged in recent weeks that Stick will in all probability be the only casualty along with team doctor Jerome Mampane which has led to Willemse’s utterances about the rugby fraternity always questioning the competence of black coaches and players.
Stick’s elevation to the Springbok team from being assistant coach to the Southern Kings Super Rugby franchise, after enjoying a successful year with the Eastern Province Under-20 side, fuelled debate about the competence of black coaches with many citing Stick’s lack of experience as a coach.
In his playing days Stick was a star for the Springbok Sevens side and captained them to their only world series win in 2009 before calling time on his Super Rugby career at the Kings to take up coaching.
Willemse, who was a member of Jake White’s 2007 Springbok World Cup-winning squad, says the time has come to challenge the racist notion that black coaches and players aren’t good enough to perform at the highest level.
“Stick is living his dream and must live it to the fullest. There will always be noise,” Willemse said.
“Focus. That is what separates good players from great players and that is what separates good coaches from great coaches. Everything that goes on in the public domain and all the sentiments are valid. We come from a very diverse country and a country that has a divisive history. We should discuss matters, we should engage more. When the whistle goes somebody has to play. Let discussions go on and let it be towards progress. Let us challenge the things we don’t believe in. It is through challenging situations and narratives that there is progress. It always has been.
“I’m hoping that we start to look at this as a South African situation and not a black and white issue. We are all party to it, so let us use it in a manner to foster national unity.”
The 35-year-old Willemse, who played in two World Cups and earned 19 Tests in an injury-plagued international career spanning four years, is vehemently opposed to laying the blame on one individual for what happened to the Springboks last year. He believes the collective should take responsibility for what went wrong in the Springboks' worst season since re-admission.
“It would be unfair to lay it (blame) in front of a particular person. I think collectively there should be an acceptance of that blame and collectively there should be an effort and mindset as to how to change it.”
Willemse says Stick should not wallow in self-pity.
“Yes, we talk about Stick. This is an opportunity of a lifetime. If you get that then you learn to swim. I don’t buy into this notion of 'is it fair, is it not fair'. I’ve been picked in teams where perhaps there might have been a better player. But at the end of the day my time in that jersey is determined by me and not by who else could have been here. So I have to make the most of my opportunity. For a guy like Stick, can you imagine being assistant Bok coach, can you imagine what that means?”
Willemse has also come out in support of embattled Bok coach Coetzee and says the former Stormers mentor needs to be handed a fair crack at the job and given the same free reign over the team as his predecessors.
“The coach has not been given a fair chance. I’m hoping that this time he’ll be able to get a fair chance in having sufficient time for preparation, being in a position where he can select his players from around the world and hopefully with the support of the public, he can turn this ship around. I’ve been in that situation and it’s tough. The last thing you need is to be kicked when you are already on the ground,” said Willemse.
Former Springbok captain Jean de Villiers echoed Willemse’s sentiments on not blaming one person for the Springboks' woes and believes Saru need to find a long-term solution to make the country’s rugby successful again.
De Villiers says the tough year the Springboks endured last year is not of Coetzee’s making and that the problems are deeply rooted within the structures of South African rugby.
“I think it is easy for us to blame one person for the problem we find ourselves in at the moment. We must have a holistic approach and look at all the competitions, structures and people we have in place to make us successful. If the answer is yes, then we must ask: Do we have the right people to implement this or must we change? I think there is a lot of change that needs to happen and I don’t believe it is up to one person,” said De Villiers.
De Villiers thinks that now is the ideal opportunity for Saru to find long-term solutions to problems that have beset South African rugby which began long before Coetzee took over the Springbok team.
“It’s all about fixing with long-term sustainable solutions and not just quick fixes looking at the short-term and actually looking at a five to 10-year plan. And looking at how we can get South African rugby at the stage where we are the best in the world for a long period of time.”
There has also been reports that Cheetahs head coach Franco Smith is likely to replace Stick with Brendan Venter coming in as a defence consultant to replace JP Ferreira who will return to the Lions after being roped into the national team for their end-of-year tour.
De Villiers says that Saru need to make a call on whether they are going to utilise the abundant rugby minds available to assist but they will have to be cautious and not take a gung-ho approach of listening to everyone offering to help.