'I wanted him at the Sharks, but as soon as Warren Gatland got involved, it was all over'
Taking on a Swansea-based team will bring back fond memories for Hollywoodbets Sharks boss John Plumtree as he heads into this weekend’s ground-breaking BKT URC clash with the Ospreys.
The Kiwi spent almost five years as coach of Swansea RFC through until late 2001, winning two league titles and the Welsh Cup. Since then, he’s worked in his homeland of New Zealand with the Hurricanes and the All Blacks, as well as in South Africa, Ireland and Japan.
Now he’s back for a second spell in charge of the Durban-based Sharks, for whom he also starred as a player. That sees him taking on the Ospreys at the Twickenham Stoop on Friday night – the first time a BKT URC match has been staged in London. It’s a fixture that really resonates with him.
“The Ospreys are close to my heart, having coached Swansea for five years, in my first job,” said Plumtree, speaking at a BKT URC round table. “I have got a lot of fantastic Welsh friends. You think back to that team I had. I was a first up coach and pretty green. I was a pretty green Plumtree, if you like!
“I was a young coach. I had one player, in Paul Moriarty, who was only a year older than me and I was coaching him. I was blessed to have so many great Welsh internationals in that team, people like Scott Gibbs, Colin Charvis, Mark Taylor, Garin Jenkins, Arwel Thomas. I was pretty lucky to be able to coach a team with that calibre of player.
“I made a lot of friends there and two of my sons were born there at Singleton Hospital. I loved it. It was a great first up job for me and I learned heaps. I loved those days. It was so tribal, against Neath, Llanelli, Bridgend. It was a good time to coach there. Welsh rugby was really strong. The Wales team was strong too. Graham Henry was there for a period when I was there. It was good times. I really enjoyed it.”
One of his Swansea-born sons, Taine, is now playing in Wales for the Scarlets – having moved over from New Zealand – and the 23-year-old flanker made his Test debut for the Welsh national team over the summer.
“I wanted him to come to the Sharks, but as soon as Warren Gatland got involved, it was all over, he was heading for Wales,” said Plumtree Snr. “I am really proud of him. He has had two or three years of background at the Blues (in Auckland) which has been good for his development. He is loving it at the Scarlets. He loves the Welsh people and he is happy. So if he’s happy, I’m happy.”
Now 58, Plumtree is bringing all his experience to bear at the Sharks, some 11 years on from his last stint in charge of the South African outfit.
“I’ve been blessed to travel around different parts of the world and I’ve taken something from everyone and everywhere, every club, every country,” he said. “You develop relationships when you are in this business we are lucky to be in. That’s why I love it so much.
“It’s been great to be back at the Sharks. We have changed a lot of things in a short space of time. We have talked about what we need to do to be better and the players seem to be really positive and enjoying what I’m calling a new Sharks way.
“The key thing for me is the players love turning up for work, love what we are doing and hopefully that will be portrayed on the field. I am loving it and I hope they are loving me!”
Looking ahead to the meeting with the Ospreys at the home of Harlequins, Plumtree said: “It’s great to bring the BKT URC to London and hopefully we will get a good crowd there. There are a lot of ex-pats in that part of the world, so it’s going to be great.
“I am sure both sides will play a pretty positive brand of footie. Probably, in the last two or three years, the Sharks have played a bit too conservatively for me and we are trying to find a better balance between attack and defence. We want to play a bit more positively and slightly more ambitious.”
Comments on RugbyPass
Etzebeth went on to say: “I would never dream of saying that systems stay in place following a change in captain. To say that would be deeply, deeply, disrespectful of Siya. A while back an Irish person told me they would be fine without Sexton, so I’m just responding to that.”
3 Go to commentsClose games are what we want to see…. What a match it was…. I am sure that everyone was drained by the end of it. The reality of it all there has to be a winner and a loser. The fact that we still talking about it is almost 6 months to the day Rugby is the winner.. Asante sana… Here is to 2027 and what it will bring out.
182 Go to commentsIt’s going to be a good game. COYQ
1 Go to comments“Shock”, the guy was casually saying he was just slightly surprised. Nowadays if you say anything it gets taken completely out of context. Calm down everyone.
156 Go to commentsAll I can say after reading this bitter, sour, sad piece is… Thank you very much! This will be read in the change room just before kick off on 31 August…
182 Go to commentsLook, we know contradicting opinions and wacky comments bring readers and clicks, so well done to RP for allowing always-wrong-Ben to say something here. However RP needs to put a disclaimer next to his comments for their own credibility. NZ was and is incapable of acknowledging their opp beating them. They refused so with Ire and with Arg in 2022 and also the Boks in 2023 x 2. Nothing Ben says here holds water, NZ attacked backwards, except when Kolisi and Kolbe was off And cyncialy took out Bongi, we played without lineouts for 75mins. Kolisi and Kurt-Lee almost scored twice. Thats 3 vs 2 for Boks, but the Boks opportunities was legal. Boks should have been 16-3 up by half time. Tacticaly the Boks attacked better defended better scrummed better (without a hooker) kicked better and crossed the whitewash more times. Boks beat Fr Eng Nz to win in 23, comeon give some credit at least. Even Federer Verstappen NY Mets, Mamoa, was able to see a great human sport achievement by the Boks and their DNA Boks #RWC27 !🏉
182 Go to commentsForget the 85kg bit, that can become something else. However I do like the one off test on ANZAC day idea. SR plays Fri/ Sat, test players travel Sunday and the squads have the full week together before playing Saturday. Rest of SR has a week off. Either involve women's teams in same location or in the other country and rotate annually. Herbert is right in that change is needed.
3 Go to commentsI’ve read loads of nonsense before but this article takes the cake. Or perhaps someone changed the date for April Fool's Day.
3 Go to commentsReally Rugbypass? Ben Smith I think you forgot what the Springboks did to the All Blacks at Twickenham 8 weeks earlier? Springboks 35 All Blacks 7. There is alot of ifs and buts in your article. The All Blacks threw the sink at the Springboks and unfortunately they were not good enough regardless if they played with 14 men or not. It was the Springboks who forced the All Blacks to make mistakes! Sorry but not Sorry the Springboks is the best ever Rugby World Cup Nation in the world. 4 Cups baby!
182 Go to commentsYou just backed the Boks with that fantastic review! Well done! Have some cake!
182 Go to commentsBen Smith please write up something better than this. The Springboks would have won the world cup if you were 15 men on the field. They would have found a way, they always find a way to beat the All Blacks.
182 Go to commentsWow, there is a lot of “could have” and “ should have” in this waist of time dribble. I love the desperation in this story to search for a glimpse at a silver lining. Here are the facts, NZ was a badly coached and undisciplined shadow of their former glory. They never took the lead in a game they were never going to win.
182 Go to commentsGOTTA MAKE ‘THE GEORGE’ HAPPEN!!!! That’s a great idea! A trans Tasman midget battle on ANZAC Day. I don’t think the ABs Wallabies game should be a one off winner takes all though, just the first match with the other two later in the year with the RC. Reason being, no one will ever shut up about how aussies couldn’t win it when it was a 3 match series.
3 Go to comments@Ben smith. Thats knock out rugby. So honeslty who cares?
182 Go to commentsIt will interesting to know which Irish players said that…
2 Go to commentsNaaaww boys will be boys! Now run along ya wee scamp! Don’t let us catch you at again😏
1 Go to commentsGreat to have Ethan Blackadder back in the Crusaders in the last few weeks. One of the best all round loose forwards around. He played so well last week against the Rebels. Fantastic attitude Ethan has and his comments are spot on.
2 Go to commentsThe author is 100% right. The Springboks know that they don't have near the natural attraction, mana, skill and mystic the All Blacks have. So, Chasing the sun 1 & 2 was concocted to overblow the Boks image on the back of a corruptly obtained “win". It's marketing ploy to force the Boks delusion as the World's Best. I guess World Rugby is also not to be believed when it came out with an apology about how the final was officiated. And if the 2023 final such a superb game by the Boks, then the Boks crying about Referee Bryce Lawrence for decades is also deserves a laugh. Chase the sun and get burned like a moth. A very well written literary piece that tore the Boks and Chasing the sun farce to shreds. 🖤All Blacks🏉
182 Go to commentsI’d say France was far more hard done by in the 2011 final than the All Blacks in this game. Joubert simply refused to call a penalty against the All Blacks in the last quarter even directing an All Black to drop a ball he picked up in an offside position rather than penalizing him. This article also totally discounts the efforts of PSTD. Ask Jordie how well he played. Or the backup flank who played hooker for the entire game. Siya was also a brilliant tackle by Richie from scoring a blinder. Pollard was also fantastic. Look I don’t like the boks style but the only thing more questionable than the content of this article is the timing of it. Get over it already
182 Go to commentsDad Marty was also a handy rugby player for Linwood back in the day. Great bloke. Sensational softball career.
2 Go to comments