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'Nugget' tactic mined by Sale on recent visit by Springboks bosses
It was quite the bye-week last week for Alex Sanderson and his fellow Sale coaches. The Sharks management began it with a jolly in Barcelona at the behest of their club owners and it ended last Friday by welcoming the Springboks boss Jacques Nienaber and some of his assistants to Carrington for a barbecue, some beers and a catch-up with the South African players based in Manchester.
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The Springboks’ brains trust has originally hoped to collectively meet up with their Gallagher Premiership-based players in London but one club objected and with that plan scuppered, what took place instead was Nienaber, Felix Jones and Andy Edwards dropping by to meet Sanderson and co at the Sale training centre ahead of the upcoming league game versus Newcastle and the European quarter-final away at Racing.
It sounded like a meeting of minds. There was plenty of information sharing and it all culminated in Sale boss Sanderson receiving an invite to fly south and spend time with the Springboks coaches in their backyard. Asked by RugbyPass how the afternoon in Manchester unfolded, the director of rugby said: “Good. Talked about all our lads, had a beer with them. Talked a little bit about Racing because the Munster coaches played there.
“Got some feedback – they watched the game against Bristol, and then a bit of tactics, a bit of sharing, so I have had the invite to go back out there next year and I think I will. I think I will go out when the sun starts shining back out there in South Africa in December or January.”
Tell us more, what could the coaches of a southern hemisphere Test team help an English club coach out with? “One of the things we talked about, they had watched that dire game against Bristol at home and the Bristol tactics were pretty smart against a Sale team that loves the physical.
“They [the Springboks] do too. It’s got a good set-piece, which we have when we are on form. Bristol took all that away from us and so we lost our energy for it, lost our zest and got dragged into what was a really boring game because there was no fight, no real competitive edge on the gain line which we could get our teeth stuck into which we thrive off. So I said look, ‘What’s your tactics on this?’
“They have a similar situation against Australia consistently. Rarely win and Australia are a team that takes the set-piece away by sacking and doing this and doing that without coming to the fight and then 60 minutes into a game South Africa have got to try and chase the game a little and they end up getting a little like Australia and that is where they come unstuck.
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“We talked about little things like that, tactically how you could get around it and scoreboard pressure is one of them. If you can get down there and farm a penalty or two and get a couple of kicks on the board, then they have to come to the fight. That was one of the things and it was a nugget because I’m sure we are going to get it again, if not this season.”
Asked how the visit of the Springboks bosses to Sale came about, Sanderson explained: “They came over from South Africa and wanted to do a day on a Sunday in London, a training-free day for every Premiership club and I thought that is a good compromise surely. Everyone can go down there on a Sunday, have your meeting and come back on the Monday.
“I thought that was a great compromise but one club reneged on it, one club which I think was pretty poor considering they had planned it around the games to be on the right day. So I rang them up, had a chat and we started to share and they said we’ll come and see you as they knew we were open to it.
“They got the plane across. They also went to Sarries and they also spent some time in Ireland (and France). So it’s a great trip for them as well, they ended up seeing a few of the clubs and a lot of the lads they would have seen anyway. Our lads loved it, our lads enjoyed it and it was a really important thing to share.
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“Obviously I share with (Saracens boss) Mark McCall because we are mates but there is very little else that is shared in the Premiership and yet the best organisations which are centrally funded, their coaches are made to share, they are made to coalesce and talk about tactics and everything else.”
Comments on RugbyPass
be smart - go black
12 Go to commentsNext week the Crusaders hopefully have Scott Barrett back. Will be great to have the captain back. Hopefully he will be the All Black captain as well.
12 Go to commentsExciting place to be for the young fella. I expected he was French Polynesian when I saw him included in the France 6N squad (after seeing him in NZs), and therefor be strong grounds we might loose him to rugby down here. Good, in that he is good enough to warrant such a profile, and from a journalism’s fan interaction aspect, to finally get a back ground story on the fella. Hope he has settled into NZ OK and that at least one rugby country will fit with him to help his development, which, if so, he should surely continue for a few years, and then that he can experience France to it’s fullest with a bit more maturity and less reliance on family than you would have at his current age. A good 3 or 4 years before he would be ready for International duty if he wanted to wait. Of course he already sounds good enough to accept a call up, and to cap himself, in the more immediate future (he’d have to be very very good in the case of the ABs), and he’ll get a great taste of that being with the Canes who have a bunch who are just a few years further into their career and looking likely Internationals themselves.
12 Go to commentsI remember towards the end of the original broadcasting deal for Super rugby with Newscorp that there was talk about the competition expanding to improve negotiations for more money - more content, more cash. Professional rugby was still in its infancy then and I held an opposing view that if Super rugby was a truly valuable competition then it should attract more broadcasters to bid for the rights, thereby increasing the value without needing to add more teams and games. Unfortunately since the game turned professional, the tension between club, talent and country has only grown further. I would argue we’re already at a point in time where the present is the future. The only international competitions that matter are 6N, RC and RWC. The inter-hemisphere tours are only developmental for those competitions. The games that increasingly matter more to fans, sponsors and broadcasters are between the clubs. Particularly for European fans, there are multiple competitions to follow your teams fortunes every week. SA is not Europe but competes in a single continental competition, so the travel component will always be an impediment. It was worse in the bloated days of Super rugby when teams traversed between four continents - Africa, America, Asia and Australia. The percentage of players who represent their country is less than 5% of the professional player base, so the sense of sacrifice isn’t as strong a motivation for the rest who are more focused on playing professional rugby and earning as much from their body as they can. Rugby like cricket created the conundrum it’s constantly fighting a losing battle with.
3 Go to commentsOh wow… “But as La Rochelle proved in winning in Cape Town this season, a cross-continental away assignment need not spell the end of days.” La Rochelle actually proved quite the opposite. After traveling to Cape town and back they (back-to-back and current champs) got mercilessly thumped the next week. If travel is not the reason, why else would a full-strength powerhouse like La Rochelle get dumped on their @r$e$ one week later?
26 Go to commentsYou know he can land a winning conversion after the full time siren is up. (Even if it takes two attempts.)
5 Go to commentsA very insightful article from Jake. I would love to know how South African’s feel about their move to Europe. Do you prefer playing in Europe or want to go back to Super Rugby?
3 Go to commentspure fire
1 Go to commentsA very well thought out summary of all the relevant complications…agree with your ”refer the Cricket Test versus 20/20 comparison”. More also definitely doesn't necessarily mean better!
3 Go to commentsMust be something when you are only 19 y.o and both NZ and France want you. Btw he wasn’t the only new caledonian in french U20 as Robin Couly also lived in Noumea until 17. Hope he’s successful wherever he chooses to play.
12 Go to comments“Several key players in the Stade Rochelais squad are in their thirties” South Africans are going to hate the implications of that comment!
5 Go to commentsI know Leinster did a job on La Roche but shortly after HT Leinster were 30-13 ahead of them and at a similar time Toulouse were trailing Exeter. At 60 mins Leinster were 27 ahead but after 67 mins Toulouse were only 19 ahead before Exeter collapsed. That’s heavier scoring by Leinster against the Champions. I think people are looking at Toulouses total a little too much. I also think Northhampton are in with a real chance, albeit I’d put Leinster as favourites. If Leinster make the final I expect them to win by more than ten and with control.
5 Go to commentsHey Nick, your match analysis is decent but the top and tail not so much, a bit more random. For a start there’s a seismic difference in regenerating any club side over a test team. EJ pretty much had to urinate with the appendage he’d been given at test level whereas club success is impacted hugely by the budget. Look no further than Boudjellal’s Toulon project for a perfect example. The set ups at La Rochelle and Leinster are like chalk and cheese and you are correct that Leinster are ahead. Leinster are not just slightly ahead though, they are light years ahead on their plans, with the next gen champions cup team already blooded, seasoned and developing at speed from their time manning the fort in the URC while the cream play CC and tests. They have engineered a strong talent conveyor belt into their system, supported by private money funnelled into a couple of Leinster private schools. The really smart move from Leinster and the IRFU however is maximising the Irish Revenue tax breaks (tax relief on the best 10 years earnings refunded at retirement) to help keep all of their stars in Ireland and happy, while simultaneously funding marquee players consistently. And of course Barrett is the latest example. But in no way is he a “replacement for Henshaw”, he’s only there for one season!!! As for Rob Baxter, the best advice you can give him is to start lobbying Parliament and HMRC for a similar state subsidy, but don’t hold your breath… One thing Cullen has been very smart with is his coaching team. Very quickly he realised his need to supplement his skills, there was talk of him exiting after his first couple of years but he was extremely shrewd bringing in Lancaster and now Nienaber. That has worked superbly and added a layer that really has made a tangible difference. Apart from that you were bang on the money… 😉😂
5 Go to commentsNot sure exactly what went wrong for him at Glasgow but it’s pretty clear he ain’t Franco’s cup of tea. Suspect he would have been better served heading out of Scotland around the same time as Finn, Hoggy and Jonny!
1 Go to commentsBulls disrespected the Northampton supporters and the competition. Decide quickly, fully in or out.
26 Go to commentsI wonder if Parling was ever on England’s radar as a coach? Obviously Borthwick is a great lineout coach, but I do worry he might be taking on too much as both head coach and forwards coach.
1 Go to commentsJason Jenkins has one cap. When Etzebeth was his age he had over 80 caps. Experience matters. He will never amount to what Etzebeth has because he hasn’t been developed as an international player.
2 Go to commentsSays much about the player picking this gig over the easier and bigger rewards offered to him in Japan. Also says a lot about the state sanctioned tax benefits the Irish Revenue offers pro rugby players, with their ten highest earning years subject to an additional 40% tax relief and paid as a lump sum, in cash, at retirement. Certainly helps Leinster line up the financial ducks in a row to fund marquee signings like this!!! No other union anywhere in world rugby benefits from this kind of lucrative financial sponsorship from their government…
5 Go to commentsTrue Jordie could earn a lot more in Japan. But by choosing Leinster he’ll be playing with 1 of the best clubs in the world and can win a champions cup and URC…..
6 Go to commentsThanks for that Marshy, noticed you didn't say who is gonna win it. We know who ain't gonna win it - your Crusaders outfit. They've gone from having arguably the best Super Rugby first five ever, to having a clutch of rookies. Hurricanes all the way!
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