News

Boks shed friends and admirers

July 07 2009

The Springboks have made no secret of their belief that they have been victimized by members of the media and by citing commissioners.

The culmination of their frustrations appeared on Saturday afternoon when John Smit's men wore armbands with 'Justice 4 Bakkies' or variations thereof inscribed on them, a gesture to show solidarity with Bakkies Botha who was banned for two weeks for an offence in the previous game.

Well, if the Springboks think they're getting a tough time they certainly aren't doing anything to help themselves.

The Springboks white armbands made a mockery of the gesture and I couldn't help but roll my eyes at the sight of 'Justice' stuck onto Victor Matfield's scrum cap.

The act was that of petulant schoolchildren, believing they have the moral high ground when in reality they themselves are guilty of much worse.

Armbands are traditionally warn during sporting events to mourn the loss of a fallen comrade, and at times have to make political statements. Think Zimbabwean cricketers Henry Olonga and Andy Flower wearing black armbands during the 2003 Cricket World Cup to 'mourn the death of democracy' in the Southern African nation.

When one considers the gravity of such situations, the act of wearing an armband because you feel you team-mate's two-week suspension was unfair is pitiful and scornworthy.

There is no doubt that Botha was hard done by, a two-week ban was perhaps harsh.

But the reality is that Botha is a thug and there have been many past occasions in which he has escaped punishment when he shouldn't have.

Rather than follow the correct administrative channels, the Boks - led by the chaotic Peter de Villiers and the increasingly tetchy John Smit - have dared to believe they are bigger than the game. That is behaviour that's hard to like, even for South Africans.

Couple this with De Villers' failure to condemn Schalk Burger's act of eye gouging - without a gentle reminder from the IRB anyway - and the Springboks' propensity to lash out under pressure at Ellis Park, and you have the beginnings of a once-proud team becoming thoroughly unlikeable, even to their own.

The citing system and the ubiquitous Law 10.4 (j) need to be addressed - a centralised and consistent disciplinary committee would be a good start - but the Springboks also need to abandon their victimization complex and have a good, hard think about the type of team they are becoming.

By Julia Harris