'No excuse': Handre Pollard receives a lashing from ex-Springboks head coach

Springboks and Bulls flyhalf Handre Pollard has received stern feedback from former Bok coach Nick Mallett after the disappointing performance in the URC final against Leinster.

Pollard has come under fire for an error-strewn performance in the 36-7 loss to Leinster, with his off-afternoon grabbing media attention. Ex-Irish international Simon Zebo labelled the performance “terrible”.

Mallett’s advice to Pollard was that he has to be a “flawless player” that doesn’t make costly errors and simply manages a game, implying that he can’t make the big plays that other No.10s can.

“He certainly didn’t have his best half. That first half was probably one where he made more mistakes than I saw him make in the whole of the 2023 World Cup.” Mallett told the Talking Boks podcast.

“He has to understand that his job is to be an error-free player. He can never make a mistake.

“From the kick-off, he’s got to kick it perfectly over the 15m line and put it in a contestable position where his team can challenge the receiver.

“If he kicks a penalty to touch, there’s absolutely no excuse for not finding touch.”

The ex-Bok coach said he “isn’t as good” as other 10s when it comes to playmaking so doesn’t have the license to try things in the way a Mannie Libbok can.

The message was to tone down the risk and do his job as a game manager.

“Where Handré isn’t as good as some other flyhalves is in their ability to break the game open and perhaps their passing ability,” he said.

“So when I say he needs to be a flawless player, I mean that in terms of what he does.

“He must never miss a tackle, never throw a poor pass and make sure his kicks go exactly where they’re supposed to go.

“The kick that missed touch just before half-time, which could have brought them back into the game, wasn’t good enough.

“You look at a guy like Manie Libbok and you vaguely excuse those things because Manie does so much else with the ball.

“But with Handré, that’s what he’s got to do right. He’s got to get those things right.”

Pollard started last year’s Test against the All Blacks at Eden Park before a lacklustre performance saw him dropped for the next game in Wellington.

He returned in November for one start against Italy but Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu had effectively taken the starting job.

With Fienberg-Mngomezulu now injured for the foreseeable future, the 32-year-old Pollard has a chance to win back the role in the July Nations Championship fixtures.

He’s been named one of three flyhalves in the squad along with Mannie Libbok and rookie Vusi Moyo, who won a World U20 Championship last year with South Africa.