De Bruin: Right now it’s not only about winning or losing for the Lions
HEAD COACH Swys de Bruin has hinted that Lions fans are going to have to be patient with their team in 2019.
The three-time runners-up and South Africa’s best outfit in 2016, 2017 and last year are seemingly going through what can only be called a rebuilding phase following the departure to Europe of several big-name players at the end of last season. And it’s showed on the field.
At the halfway point of this year’s competition the Lions have a 50% win record, having won four games and lost four. They are currently in last place in the five-team SA conference and still have to face the Chiefs and Crusaders on their three-match tour of Australasia. RUGBYAUSTRALIA (RA) is set to terminate Israel Folau’s contract after it issued the country’s best-known and best-paid player a code of conduct breach notice on Monday over a social media post saying gay people would go to “hell” if they did not “repent”.
RA had previously said it would terminate the contract of the 30-year-old fullback, a fundamentalist Christian, if
De Bruin’s side lost 31-20 to the Brumbies at the weekend to go with earlier defeats by the Stormers, Bulls and Sharks. They also only just snuck past the Rebels.
While pleased with some of his team’s attacking play against the Brumbies, De Bruin lamented his side’s poor defence – something he attributed to all the new faces in the Lions team this year.
“There are a few guys we’re still grooming ... player from our junior system,” said De Bruin.
“(Right now) it’s not about only winning and losing; it can’t be (about that) when you’ve lost up to 13 players since last year, and had to bring in a bunch of new guys. We’re blooding guys at the moment, they’re learning ... and it means we’re in more or less the same place we were in 2014.”
Five years ago the Lions had just he could not offer a good reason for the post.
“The Rugby Australia Integrity Unit deemed that Folau had committed a high-level breach of the Professional Players’ Code of Conduct warranting termination of his employment contract,” RA said in a statement on its website.
“Folau has 48 hours to accept the returned to Super Rugby after sitting out the 2013 season (to make place for the Southern Kings) and under the guidance of De Bruin and then sanction or have the matter referred to a Code of Conduct hearing.”
Folau has virtually been ever-present in the Wallabies number 15 shirt since switching to rugby union from Australian Rules in 2013, and his sacking would be a massive blow to coach Michael Cheika at this year’s Rugby World Cup in Japan.
The player posted similar comments head coach Johan Ackermann, the Lions slowly built a team of mainly discarded players from other unions. Two years later they qualified for the final. And they did the same in 2017 and last year.
Many of those players went on to become Springboks and the Lions were, by some distance, SA’s premier team.
However, Ackermann and his son, loose forward Ruan, left the Lions after the 2017 campaign and they were followed to Europe by Faf de Klerk, Rohan Janse van Rensburg, Ruan Dreyer, Jacques van Rooyen, Franco Mostert, Jaco Kriel, Jaco van der Walt, while Akker van der Merwe, Corne Fourie and Andries Ferreira also left for other franchises.
It has meant that De Bruin has had to virtually build a new team again this year. last year but escaped sanction and signed a new deal with RA until 2022 in February.
Wallabies coach Cheika said earlier that he would not be able to pick Folau again due to the “disrespectful” social media posts.
Folau said on Sunday he would stand by his comments, even if that meant giving up rugby. AB DE VILLIERS, the former South Africa batsman, has said that playing in tournaments such as the IPL keeps him energetic and motivated to continue performing and be a role model for young kids in South Africa.
De Villiers retired from international cricket in May 2018, but he has been actively involved in global T20 leagues thereafter.
The 35-year-old is currently representing the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the IPL and remains sharp on the field, impressing with his acrobatic efforts.
On Saturday, De Villiers, scored an unbeaten 59 off 38 balls against the Kings XI Punjab, which led Bangalore to their first win of the season.
“This kind of tournament, I’m playing every now and then, every 2-3 months. (It) really keeps me energetic,” De Villiers said. “I get to work with university guys back home. With some of the local guys and local youngsters, which really gives me the energy and really motivates me to be better for some of the youngsters back home and be an example for them.” | CARDIFF CITY manager Neil Warnock has called on his players to take inspiration from golf icon Tiger Woods’ sensational comeback story as he tries to defy the odds and keep the Welsh club in the Premier League.
Woods completed one of the greatest sporting comebacks on Sunday when he claimed his fifth Masters title, 11 years after winning his last major championship.
A final round resurgence earned Woods another green jacket and Warnock said Cardiff also needed to rediscover their spark with five games remaining in the season.
“We’ve just got to look at the golf, and look at what he’s done, Tiger, which was amazing and nobody had given him a chance either,” Warnock told reporters ahead of tonight’s relegation “six-pointer” at Brighton & Hove Albion.
“It’s an opportunity for us to give ourselves a chance until the end of the season. We have to grab that.” |