Jake White says Allister Coetzee was at a disadvantage right from the start of his tenure as Springbok coach.
In his latest column for AllOutRugby, the 2007 World Cup-winning coach wrote that it is impossible for a Bok coach to be successful if there isn’t a level playing field.
‘Allister Coetzee should have raised his objections when he got the Springbok job – his claims would have had much more credibility if he’d voiced them at the beginning of his term instead of at the end. Having said that, I do believe he got the raw end of the deal.
‘I think that his love for the Boks and his desire to coach the national team probably clouded his reaction to the parameters he’d have to work in and, instead of saying it can’t be done, he overlooked the impact of those restrictions.
‘It’s impossible to compete in international rugby if you don’t have an even playing field. If you’re playing against top Test teams that have got carte blanche, but you don’t, then you’re not going to win.
‘I don’t know why anyone would want to go coach in the international arena at a disadvantage – if someone starts 10m ahead of you in a 100m race, then chances are, you won’t catch up.’
White also questioned whether SA Rugby would now change the framework for director of rugby Rassie Erasmus, who is expected to be the hands-on Bok coach until the 2019 World Cup.
‘You have to say that does smell a bit fishy – perhaps Allister didn’t get all the help he could have because there was always a Plan B waiting in the wings.
‘And the Boks will improve under Rassie, because the rules will be different.’
Photo: Tertius Pickard/Gallo Images
