Boks need time to gel – Van Graan
Assistant coach Johann van Graan believes the Springboks need to play more Tests in order to unlock their true potential.
After a second consecutive loss in the 2016 Rugby Championship, the Sprinboks have come under heavy scrutiny for their apparent lack of direction under new coach Allister Coetzee. The Boks let slip a first half lead in their 23-17 loss to Australia over the weekend – leading to further criticism from the media fraternity.
Van Graan, the only survivor of the previous coaching regime, isn’t buying into the negativity and has pointed to the time it took a number of teams he’s been involved with to develop into trophy winning outfits.
“At the Bulls it took a few years - all credit to Heyneke and his coaching staff and the players back then. It took six or seven years to win Super Rugby for the first time and another two years to win it two more times,” Van Graan reminisced.
“If you look at it in terms of Southern Hemisphere rugby, a team like the Chiefs has been together for five years or so. Look at the All Blacks now. They had that World Cup quarterfinal loss in 2007, came back and have been together for eight years.
“They won that World Cup and when Steve Hasnen took over, he was close to 100 Tests as the assistant coach of the All Blacks and then became head coach and they’ve gone from strength to strength.
“I think it takes time, experience you can’t buy – the only way to get it is to play Test matches together,” the Bok assistant coach said.
As is the nature of the South African rugby fan, winning is a top priority and seeing the Boks struggle has led to a very negative response to the current state of affairs. Van Graan is no stranger to the pressures associated with being in the Springbok camp but he made it clear that Boks are aiming to become the top side in the world.
“We’ve got a fantastic, rugby-mad nation in South Africa that demands results. They love to see the springboks win and obviously that is our job – to win and to perform. That is what we are here for. It’s not easy but that is what we are here for.
“We’re a proud rugby nation and we’d love to be number one. But at this stage we are chasing number one. That is why you coach, that is why you play, you want to be measured against the best. My big thing about New Zealand is respect – I respect the way they do things and the way they conduct themselves.”
The Springboks face the All Blacks in Christchurch this Saturday. Kickoff is at 09h35.
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