South African rugby coach Jake White believes Schalk Burger is being unfairly singled out by referees, saying it was almost as if someone was trying to ”put the nail” into the flanker.
South Africa’s player of the year was yellow-carded for the second time in as many Tests during last weekend’s 17-12 defeat by Ireland that ended the Springboks’ hopes of a grand slam on their British Isles tour.
That followed his sin-binning in the Tri-Nations champions’ thrilling 38-36 win against Wales earlier this month.
But White, speaking ahead of Saturday’s Twickenham Test against world champions England, insisted Burger, a nominee for the International Rugby Board’s player of the year award, was the victim of double standards.
”I’ve got to say that I feel as if someone is starting to put the nail into Schalk.
”Early on in the game he made a tackle and was rolling away and the ball was coming out on the Irish side and he was penalised for not rolling away when he was actually on the other side of a ruck.
”I’m starting to get the feeling he’s not allowed to do things that other players are getting away with because of the fact that someone has said he has a huge impact on the game.
”The guy’s a little bit confused. When you show him the video footage and he says ‘why are they saying I’m doing it wrong’ and he’s not doing anything wrong, and when he shows you another clip five minutes later when there’s another player in a white [Irish] jersey doing exactly the same thing, what do you tell him?
”All we are doing is dampening something that’s really great in the game. You are talking about a 21-year-old openside flanker who has turned rugby upside down in one year and all of a sudden that’s seen as a negative.”
White, added that such had been Burger’s impact, teams were now trying to copy his style of play.
”I know for a fact coaches are trying to practise skills that Schalk does instinctively anyway by bouncing up and getting straight to his feet and competing for the ball.
”It’s the same as when Jonty Rhodes [former South Africa cricketer] fielded in the covers, people practised falling down, getting up, and throwing the stumps down which he did without practice.”
Meanwhile White, who has transformed the side since replacing the controversial Rudolf Straeuli following South Africa’s poor display at last year’s World Cup, was still struggling to come to terms with the incident that led to Ireland’s decisive try at
Lansdowne Road.
New Zealand referee Paul Honiss blew for a penalty and told Springbok captain John Smit to talk to his players.
But while hooker Smit was doing just that, Honiss allowed play to re-start and fly-half Ronan O’Gara, who scored all of Ireland’s points, crossed their line.
”When you look at it unemotionally it still looks as bad as it did when you were emotional on Saturday,” White said.
”We had a bad image and our discipline wasn’t great. Now we have a captain who has been told to talk to his players, does that, turns around and all of a sudden there’s a try. I’m not quite sure what you want us to do next.
”Had Martin Johnson [England’s World Cup-winning skipper] been standing there then there’s no way that ref would have allowed play to go on.”
England greeted new coach Andy Robinson with a 70-0 thrashing of Canada at Twickenham last weekend and White said he expected a tough Test against a much-changed team to the one that beat South Africa 25-6 at the World Cup in Perth.
”People can say they are rebuilding and they have a new coach but that’s immaterial. I really don’t believe they are going to be giving us any favours.” – Sapa-AFP