ANDY COLQUHOUN, Pretoria | Tuesday 10.30pm.
A PERPLEXED Naas Botha has hit back at “ordinary” Francois Pienaar in the latest row over the headline-seeking claims in Pienaar’s autobiography.
The former Springbok skipper slammed Botha for continually “sniping” at him in his book, Rainbow Warrior. Louis Luyt and Andre Markgraaff are also lambasted in the tome.
Botha – who holds five South African test scoring records and appeared in a record 11 Currie Cup finals – was non-plussed by Pienaar’s remarks.
“I hardly know him so it’s strange to me that he’s so upset with me,” hewas reported as saying in the Pretoria News.
“I think the truth of the matter is that Francois was an ordinary player. No one in the future is going to remeber him as the best player around.
“They will say he was a great captain but no one will praise his playing abilities.
“It seems Francois is using controversy as a pawn to sell the book. It’s a pity.”
Pienar’s claims that players had taken banned substances during his international playing days also made inetrnational headlines when the book was serialised while his criticisms of Andre Markgraaff also angered the former Springbok coach.
Pienaar said he confronted the coach over rumours that Markgraaff believed Peinaar had faked an injury in 1996.
Markgraaff denied it but Pienaar wrote: “I sensed he was lying through his teeth.”
Pienaar was controversially left out of the following end of season tour by Markgraaff who has hit back at the charge.
“He was left out of the Springbok squad because he was simply not good enough anymore,” Markgraaff told a Sunday newspaper. — MWP