Coetzee is the man for Bok job
But official announcement delayed to next week
THE identity of the next Springbok coach will not immediately be announced after today’s SA Rugby general council meeting as originally scheduled. But council members will be told of the preferred coach and they will be asked to ratify the appointment.
It is understood that some paperwork needs to be completed, and this has taken longer than planned, but the appointment is not in jeopardy.
The name of the coach will be revealed next week.
SA Rugby have not divulged the name of their preferred candidate, but Times Media has learnt that former Stormers boss Allister Coetzee is the man for the job.
Coetzee, 52, is contracted to Japanese club side Kobe Kobelco Steel. SA Rugby and the club need to agree to a transfer fee.
Coetzee took the Stormers to the Super Rugby playoffs four times in six seasons in charge, which included the 2010 final.
He favoured a defence-based game, which has drawn some criticism from those who feel the Springboks need to evolve their conservative approach.
Under Coetzee’s predecessor, Heyneke Meyer, the Boks ended doing little more than tackling and surviving off turnovers by the end of last year.
Meyer attempted to change the Boks’ approach during his tenure between 2012 and last year and had some success, particularly in 2013 when they scored 47 tries in 12 internationals.
That run included four against the Wallabies during a record 38-12 win in Brisbane and four against the All Blacks in a losing effort at Ellis Park.
But Meyer increasingly moved away from a more expansive approach until the Boks became little more than a defence-first team, also using set-piece superiority at last year’s World Cup.
For the Springboks to close the widening gap on world champions New Zealand, the new coach will have to find ways of creating try-scoring opportunities.
Coetzee, stereotyped as a risk-averse coach, will have to embrace that challenge.
But he is well-liked and respected within the rugby fraternity, and this is likely to allow him licence to experiment.
Former Bok skipper Fourie du Preez is an unexpected supporter of Coetzee as coach.
“I don’t know who the new coach will be, but I read in the media it’s going to be Allister [Coetzee],” Du Preez said.
“The delay in naming the coach is not great for our rugby, but if it is Allister, it will be good for SA.
“When Allister was Bok assistant coach under Jake White (2004-07) we got on well. He is one of the most knowledgeable backs coaches I have worked with.
“What I hear from the Stormers guys is also good. He is a great people’s person and I think he will be a good choice.”
Before the formal general council meeting today, an extraordinary general council meeting will take place where presidents from at least 12 of 14 unions will seek clarity from the executive council (exco) over chief executive Jurie Roux’s position.
Roux is facing a lawsuit from the University of Stellenbosch for the alleged misuse of Maties’ Rugby Club funds between 2002 and 2010 when he was chairman.
The exco sought labour law opinion from senior counsel and have backed Roux based on that advice and pending the outcome of his dispute with Maties.
But disgruntled presidents believe they are owed a better explanation.
Although not formally on the agenda, the issue of EP Rugby’s provisional liquidation will also come under discussion.
