De Villiers got everything wrong

Mission accomplished. South Africa won the Lions series 2-1 & it is time to reflect on the Springboks & Peter De Villiers performances.

Every 12 years the Lions tour South Africa. The previous tour in 1997 was decided by a Jeremy Gasscot drop kick. This year, a 54 meter penalty kick by Morné Steyn. Yet, I can’t help to feel Peter De Villiers, with his odd sayings & phrases, was the main attraction during an epic series. It should have never been that way.

Peter De Villiers will go down as the winning coach but also as the coach who thinks eye gouging is “part of the game.” The Boks nearly lost the first test through his premature substitutions. The second we won just by a cat’s whisker due to wrong team selection & the third he gave away with 10 changes in the team. Overall I think the series win will leave a bitter after taste in his mouth.

My best player of the series is Fourie Du Preez. This scrumhalf kept the boat moving forward through the troubled waters with his kicking boot, organization of the forwards & providing the backline with clean ball.

Find of the tour is undoubtedly Heinrich Brüssow. In the little game he got he showed that he deserved his place. He was the public’s first choice for the test series, just like Morné Steyn, but Peter De Villiers was stubborn. Steyn showed he has a future in Springbok rugby. The rest of the group including captain John Smit played with less conviction.

But none the less, the history books will show that South Africa has won. The Lions will boast just like us for the past twelve years they scored more tries & it all could have been so different only if… Peter De Villiers listened.