PDV confirms he indeed is a clown, by deed and creed

[Burgs]

A losing Boks coach is a clown, says de Villiers

MARC HINTON
August 3, 2010 - 3:51PM

Under-siege South African rugby coach Peter de Villiers continues to wheel out the gems, likening himself to a "clown" after a run of three defeats to open the Tri Nations.

Which is ironic considering the Springboks demanded former Wallaby hooker and Fox Sports rugby analyst Brendan Cannon publicly apologise for using the same term to reference the controversial coach prior to their Tri Nations Test in Brisbane last month.

Though you couldn't fault de Villiers' honesty, it was a strange choice of terminology for the Boks coach as he answered fans' questions in the latest South African Rugby Union electronic newsletter, Bokzine.

De Villiers has been criticised for some of his media comments during and after the back-to-back defeats to the All Blacks and one-off loss to the Wallabies in Brisbane, and faces a SANZAR disciplinary hearing on Friday over a televised assertion in Australia that his team had been caught up in a World Cup conspiracy in New Zealand.

De Villiers has been roundly bagged since returning from the unsuccessful Tri Nations tour and answered a fan question in the newsletter about how he handled the criticism.

"I was always saying the greeting 'even the bad days are good' and there have been some bad days just now, that we can't deny," De Villiers answered.

"But I keep myself motivated because I believe in this team and what we are doing and know that we have the answers within ourselves to the problems that we had overseas.

"It's not like other years where we were bad and had no solutions in sight - we definitely know we can beat anyone in the world when we fix the small things that add up to a bad defeat.

"As for the criticism, I have had it since before day one! But it goes with the territory - a winning Bok coach is a superman; a losing Bok coach is a 'clown', I've learnt to take both with a pinch of salt. But thanks for your support."

Meanwhile Sanzar confirmed judicial officer Jannie Lubbe SC will hear the case of alleged misconduct against de Villiers at the SARU offices in Cape Town on Friday at 7pm (NZ time).

The misconduct charge relates to comments made by the Springbok Coach on Australia's Fox Sports Rugby Club programme on July 21.

Stuff.co.nz

[Burgs]

Must be something in the water over there?

We're at war, say Springboks

GREG GROWDEN
August 4, 2010

THE WAR OF WORDS
LOONYLAND, otherwise known as the world of South African Rugby, delved deeper into the absurd yesterday when its president, Oregan Hoskins, labelled SANZAR's disciplinary hearing over comments made by Springboks coach Peter de Villiers as ''a declaration of war by Australia and New Zealand against South Africa''.

Hoskins's comments came as the eccentric de Villiers admitted he was accustomed to being described as a ''clown'' and amid growing speculation the Springboks coaching panel is divided and assistants Gary Gold and Dick Muir could be sacked soon.

The kerfuffle has been prompted by comments made by de Villiers on Australian television before the Brisbane Test last month when he suggested the Springboks were the victims of a conspiracy, with numerous refereeing decisions going the All Blacks' way because they were hosting next year's World Cup.

''I've got my own observations about the last two Tests and I can't say it in public,'' de Villiers said on the Fox Sports Rugby Club program. ''But we do have a World Cup in New Zealand next year and maybe it was the right thing for them to win the games so they can attract more people to the games next year.''

Several days later, South African officials issued a statement attempting to convince SANZAR and the general public that de Villiers had been misunderstood.

SANZAR nonetheless decided that the comments warranted de Villiers facing its judicial officer, Jannie Lubbe, in Cape Town on Friday on an alleged misconduct charge. South African newspapers yesterday reported that local officials were furious that de Villiers would have to appear before the judiciary, and Hoskins was quoted as saying: ''We are right behind Peter and will defend him to the hilt.''

South African officials have also questioned the motives of Australia and New Zealand.

Hoskins confirmed that de Villiers had promised in an ''informal discussion'' that he would not make any more controversial remarks about referees. However, several South African newspapers have been reporting serious rifts within the coaching panel, with Rapport stating that Muir and Gold were facing ''possible dismissal''.

And the ''clown'' issue has bobbed up once again. Former Wallaby Brendan Cannon was forced to publicly apologise for calling de Villiers a clown on air. And now de Villiers is using the term himself. On the South African Rugby Union's official website, de Villiers responded to one fan query: ''As for the criticism, I have had it since before day one! But it goes with the territory - a winning Bok coach is a superman; a losing Bok coach is a 'clown', I've learnt to take both with a inch of salt.''