North Melbourne are reportedly set to land the man they covet with the news to be announced next week.
The bottom of the ladder club have offered master coach Alastair Clarkson a monster five-year contract, according to The Age’s Jake Niall.
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Clarkson’s signature has been the hottest commodity around the league with multiple clubs said to be chasing his services.
Along with North Melbourne, the GWS Giants were in hot pursuit of the mastermind who led Hawthorn to four premiership victories.
The Giants have not yet offered Clarkson a contract and while Niall reports Clarkson has not yet responded to North’s offer – Triple M’s Tom Browne says otherwise.
“Coaching update, this is just dot joining according to sources you speak to. There’s not a lot of leaks coming from North Melbourne or the Giants coaching process,” Browne said on Triple M.
“It’s certainly the strong view of sources that I speak to that Alastair Clarkson will end up as soon as next Friday at North Melbourne.
“That remains to be seen but that’s the consistent view that I’m getting is that North Melbourne is very much in the box seat to land Alastair Clarkson for a whole host of reasons.
“The Giants are now looking closely, very closely, at Adem Yze and I think they will also sound out Ross Lyon at some point in their process as well.
“Yze Giants, Clarkson North is the jungle drums in terms of the sources that I speak to at the moment.”
Journalist Mark Robinson believes a Clarkson-North Melbourne deal is “past the post”.
“Everyone’s a little bit scared to declare it because Alastair Clarkson has got the ability to change his mind and say: ‘I’m not coaching’,” he said on 3AW.
“But the further this goes on, I find that can’t happen.”
North have been the reported front runner for Clarkson’s signature for multiple weeks. A report in late July indicated he was seeking an eye-watering contract of $1.6ma year. Clarkson rubbed those reports.
Clarkson and Gerard Whateley co-hosted a function where the Hawks mentor put rumors of his big payday to join North Melbourne to bed.
“How explicit do you want me to be?” Whateley said on SEN when asked about Clarkson’s response from her.
“(He says it’s) bulls**t.
“That was Alastair Clarkson’s reaction to what’s in the public domain about $1.6 million to join North Melbourne.”
Brisbane’s defensive woes have been laid bare just two games out from finals, with one star in particular accused of playing “bruise-free footy”.
In the past six weeks, the Lions are ranked 13th for opposition scores per inside 50, and 14th for pressure, midfield intercepts and opposition from defensive 50 to inside 50 – with only Richmond’s pressure worse for any team in the top eight.
“I think they’ve got massive problems down back… huge problems that are going to render their campaign done,” Fox Footy’s David King has warned.
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What could ladder look like at finals? | 02:58
And King singled out Lions star Harris Andrews for some brutal criticism, demanding he “play like a man.”
“The first move down there being Harris Andrews, he’s playing bruise-free footy at the moment. He’s not playing with physicality,” he said.
“Forwards are just leading around him too easily, there’s no engagement, there’s no body checking, no blocks – there’s nothing. It’s pure intercept or he gets beaten.
“But he’s playing against big boppers in the AFL now and your big boys need to play big boy footy and I don’t think he is.
“He’s a two-time All Australian. We know what he can be, but this is too easy. He’ll get beaten more often than not with that sort of intent.”
Absolute scenes! Cunnington to play AFL | 02:57
Andrews is leading the way for the Lions in a number of areas including intercepts (129), marks (127), disposal efficiency (89%), one percenters (180 – 71 more than the next closest in Marcus Adams) and time on ground , and second in contested marks (24 – one behind Dan McStay).
But on AFL360, King showed vision of Andrews allowing opponent Harry McKay to dictate terms – and the two-time premiership winner called for coach Chris Fagan to put a stop to it.
“He doesn’t deny him anything,” King said.
“They are giving up too many luxuries.
Harris Andrews has to play like a man. You can’t have a guy 200cm play like that – that takes you nowhere.
“That beats some teams during the home and away season and you have a nice year, but you don’t win prelims or grand finals and they continually come up short and that’s why.
“All time Swans great” Emotional goodbye | 03:24
“So fix it or move aside.”
Andrews will be left to hold down the Lions’ defensive end this weekend with teammate Marcus Adams now sidelined under the AFL’s concussion protocols.
AFL360 co-host Mark Robinson said Fagan had spoken about the Lions’ backline efforts more than a month ago and was concerned it doesn’t appear to have been addressed.
“He’s been talking about that, the coach. They spoke about it and that’s still the profile six weeks later,” he said.
“Why aren’t they fixing it? (They’ve) gotta get nasty.”
The Lions have a tough final two games against St Kilda and Melbourne as they remain in the fight for a top four finish – a feat they’ve achieved for the past three years but never made the grand finale.
AFL commentator Wayne Carey has hit out at the journalist who reported he “came to blows” with ex-teammate Anthony Stevens at the club’s 25-year premiership reunion last weekend.
SEN’s Sam Edmund broke the story on Monday that Carey and Stevens – whose then-wife Carey infamously cheated with back in 2002, had an altercation at the Yarraville Hotel on Saturday night.
Edmund said witnesses had told him the pair were “separated”, with fellow ex-Kangaroos left “stunned” by the verbal attack.
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But on Wednesday, Carey came clean on what sparked the “firm conversation” he had with Stevens, and labeled Edmund a “dill.”
“The first story said came to blows and that’s factually incorrect. There were no blows,” he said on Triple M.
“There was a firm conversation – altercation I think is even too firm to say that occurred.
“I wanted to have a conversation about Stevo, I was worried about him. I said ‘I’m worried about you’ and he obviously took a little bit of umbrage to say I was worried about him.
“I said I’m worried about, I want him to look after himself like people want me to look after myself.
Greene to miss the rest of the season | 00:43
“To say that it was a massive altercation and it came to blows and then we left there and everyone was upset with everyone and it was a big thing is totally incorrect – that’s the disappointing thing about it.
“It wasn’t a story and still isn’t a story.
“I hope I’ve just cleared up that once again this has been blown into something it wasn’t.
“I’m not sure why it should always be talked about – it doesn’t make sense.
“(Sam’s) let himself down with this.
“You know what Sam? We all have bad days. You’ve had a shocker.”
Carey admitted it was well known he and Stevens “aren’t best mates”, but felt Edmund only reported half the story on Monday.
“What he did leave out was at the end of the night or the evening or late afternoon or whatever it was, Stevo and I actually had a couple of beers together and left together,” he said.
Jamie Elliot signs with Feet until 2025 | 00:37
“We were standing out the front both waiting for our respective Ubers to leave the particular venue. I have left that out.
“It sounds like we’ve had this massive blow up and an altercation and as he said we came to blows which was clearly factually incorrect.”
Carey said the fact Stevens failed to show for Sunday’s motorcade celebrations – in which 17 players including Carey and coach Denis Pagan were present at Marvel Stadium – was unrelated to the “firm conversation” as far as he knew.
“I don’t know whether Stevo was upset the next day or not, and that’s why he didn’t come to the motorcade,” Carey said.
“What I do know about that, and my understanding and I’ve spoken to Arch (Glenn Archer) and I’ve spoken to Kingy (David King) and I’ve spoken to heaps of other players that are close with Stevo and some of those players I’m close with and Stevo wasn’t well.
“He’d had a reasonable night. It would be fair to say. We all had a reasonable day. Stevo maybe bigger than others so he didn’t attend the Sunday.
“If there was a big issue and this big thing happened and it had upset all these ex-teammates of mine and everyone else, on Sunday I sat there with Darren Crocker, I sat there with Danielle Laidley, sat with Glenn Archer, sat there with Sholly (Craig Sholl), all and some of them really mutual friends of both of ours – if I’d upset the apple cart or they were really disappointed with what occurred that day then that next day would not be happening.”
Crows apology for camp a little too late | 02:12
Admitting the story didn’t “disappoint” him, Carey said felt for the two families involved every time the 2002 scandal – which cost Carey his North Melbourne career and saw him finish up in Adelaide – gets brought up.
“This is what really hurts every single time. So when dill’s like Sam overexaggerate something that’s happened, who affects it,” he said.
“What he doesn’t realize is it affects Stevo’s daughters, my daughters – not my son because he’s really young. It affects family members and everyone else. That’s what these types of things do.
“Who cares if Stevo and I had a firm conversation together? How is that an actual story?”
Carey had spoken earlier this year on Channel 7 about the affair that rocked North Melbourne, labeling it the “biggest regret of his adult life” and admitting it had “haunted me for over 20 years”.
AFL 360 co-host Mark Robinson believes Port Adelaide president David Koch “made an error of judgment” with recent comments about the club’s football department.
Koch told FIVEaa this week “every single person’s role” would be assessed at the end of the season, which has seen the Power drop out of finals contention after back-to-back preliminary final runs.
Senior coach Ken Hinkley is contracted until 2023, but a question mark remains over whether he’ll continue in the role, despite Hinkley himself at this stage still expecting to be there next year.
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Koch statement awkward for Hinkley? | 01:36
Koch’s comment, “turn it around or watch out”, drew criticism from Robinson.
“David Koch has been a tremendous president but he made an error of judgment in my opinion by saying what he said,” Robinson posed.
“I don’t think he gets football in the sense where if he knew this was going to be the fallout – that every media organization in Australia is going to be looking at it saying ‘are you going to get rid of him or not’ – that’s not how to treat a guy who has been there for 10 years.
“Just hold the horses a little bit. I think that’s been the fallout from this.”
Robinson labeled the comments “footy-naive”, but added they should not be misinterpreted as a call for prospective coaches to make their intentions known.
“What Koch said yesterday was not an open invitation for Alastair Clarkson’s people to ring the club,” he said.
“I know that’s been floating around … but that’s not my information.”
Adelaide veteran Taylor Walker says it’s “upsetting” to hear the distress past players feel towards the infamous 2018 pre-season camp, but insists he did everything he could as captain at the time to address “fractures” within the group.
The Crows in a lengthy open letter to the club’s fans on Monday night apologized to Eddie Betts, Josh Jenkins and others who had a “negative experience” at the controversial camp following last week’s shock new revelations — revelations that prompted the AFLPA to indicate it’ I’ll reopen its investigation into the event.
Reflecting on the fallout at West Lakes in 2018, Walker acknowledged it was a turbulent period at the club despite his best efforts.
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“I can put my head on the pillow at night, and put my hand on my heart and say that I did everything I could,” he told Triple M.
“I knew something was not right post the camp, I knew blokes weren’t feeling that great about it, there were fractures within the group like some of the boys have said… and I was having one-on-one meetings, I was having some confidential meetings at my house to try and work out exactly the path to take, and I can honestly say that I did everything I could to try and fix it.”
Walker leads the Crows out the race alongside Betts (Photo by Michael Willson/AFL Media/Getty Images)Source: FOX SPORTS
Betts and Jenkins were among the former Crows to last week detail their distressing first-hand experiences at the Gold Coast Coast-based camp in 2018 that led to several players, including Betts, and officials to depart the club in the following years.
Walker maintains that he still took a “positive experience” away from it, but admitted it was tough hearing his ex-teammate’s disturbing accounts.
“Yeah I sit here as captain at the time of the footy club, and those boys being past players… not great to be honest. It’s quite upsetting to hear that those guys are still feeling the effects of the camp,” Walker said.
“What I will say is that, the camp, a lot of people took different things out of it and I personally, I’ve said it, I took a positive experience out of it… but that does not take away from the feelings of hurt that those boys are going through at the moment.”
Adelaide overcame the intense spotlight on the club last week to defeat the West Coast Eagles by 16 points at Optus Stadium.
And Walker suggested the scrutiny hadn’t affected the vibe at the Crows, estimating “10-2o per cent” of people who attended the camp remained at the club.
“Our mantra is prioritizing others and we’re certainly doing that to the best of our ability,” he said.
“As a footy club we still have to work through this, because sitting here you don’t like hearing that past players are feeling that way,” he said.
Veteran journalist Caroline Wilson has taken aim at the Adelaide media for its response to coverage of the Crows’ infamous 2018 camp amid more calls for club figures responsible at the time to take ownership.
The Crows on Monday night released a lengthy open letter to the club’s fans, apologizing to Eddie Betts, Josh Jenkins and any players who had a “negative experience” at the pre-season camp after shock new revelations emerged last week.
It comes after Adelaide journalist David Penberthy earlier this year slammed Nine’s Sam McClure and Wilson, who’ve both extensively reported on the camp, saying the latter’s coverage was a “miserable way to spend your post-journalistic career.”
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And speaking on Channel 9’s Footy Classified on Monday night, Wilson said she remained “baffled at the collective chip on the shoulder of certain sections of the Adelaide media where that camp was concerned”.
“I don’t know the above mentioned commentator (Penberthy), but I gather he’s flipped around a bit on the camp story since then,” Wilson said.
The Crows camp that ‘ended careers’ | 02:10
“Graham Cornes in his Advertiser column recently tried to portray another side of the story, and talked about more brutal camps of days gone by, and asked where then was the Victoria media piled on. Seriously Graham?
“You boys, all of you, need to grow up, this is so childish. That story would’ve been a massive yarn wherever it’d taken place, and equally condemned. In fact it would’ve been a much bigger story if it had taken place at Collingwood or Richmond. Talk about shooting the messenger.”
The directors of Collective Mind, who organized the camp, Amon Woulfe and Derek Leddie told the Advertiser in February the Crows’ then chief executive Andrew Fagan and the club’s board had “full awareness” of the program.
The story also states the program was approved by senior club figures including coach Don Pyke, head of football Brett Burton, and doctor Marc Cesana who cleared every player as mentally and emotionally fit to attend, and was even pilot tested by one of the coaches.
And while current Crows bosses and the AFL have both apologized following last week’s revelations, McClure, who in 2020 broke the story of the camp’s details, still wasn’t satisfied those who oversaw the controversial pre-season event have taken ownership.
Jenkins full statement on infamous camp | 15:39
“We’ve talked a lot about the potential cover-up and to what extent it went. I know there’s been apologies and elements of contrition, but I stand here today still wondering who is going to take responsibility for some of the things that went on at that camp,” he said.
“They either knew about it and they deliberately lied, or they didn’t know. I’m not sure which one’s worse.”
Fox Footy AFL 360 co-host Gerard Whateley called for all Crows figures in power at the time who’re still at the club to depart.
“I hold to the view that those who were in positions of authority at the time and oversaw this and who have actively participated in the cover-up over four and half years should depart their positions,” he said.
“(Crows director of footy Mark Ricciuto) would be one, but I doubt he’s the only one within that club that would still occupy one of those positions.“
Wilson also hit out at the AFL’s lack of accountability and why it took so long for it to act.
“For Gillon McLachlan to take four years — given the AFL’s known since 2020 what went on — to actually apologize in a stand up at an airport with Channel 7 in an exclusively arranged interview is frankly quite pathetic,” she said.
“Our game betrayed him” Robbo on Betts | 01:02
“Why the AFL did nothing then still baffles me. The cover-up has been astonishing.”
The AFLPA (Players Association) last week indicated it would effectively reopen its investigation into the camp and contact all players for a “better understanding” of what occurred, saying it would’ve taken more immediate action had it known all the information from the outset .
However McClure believes putting the onus on the players to divulge the information is “classic victim blaming” and that more action should’ve been taken at the time.
“The last people who are responsible for what went on at that camp are the players,” he said,
“It is absolute garbage to think that we could sit here and label any of those players as part of the problem. And yet when people come out and speak the truth and show great courage, we suddenly turn around the responsibility on them.
“If the AFLPA wanted to know what was going in that camp, they could’ve asked, because from where we sat, it wasn’t that hard to find out.”
Carlton needed to use the Willie Rioli defense in a bid to free skipper Patrick Cripps to play in this weekend’s must-win clash with Melbourne, according to Jonathan Brown.
Like Cripps, Willie Rioli was banned for his mid-air collision with Sun Matt Rowell as the Eagle’s impact sent the midfielder crashing into the turf.
Rioli was given a one-match ban for the heavy bump, but was successful in overturning the suspension at the court by arguing his actions were not “unreasonable”.
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Cripps has been hit with a two-match ban for his similar action that left Lion Callum Ah Chee concussed on the Gabba turf.
Brown believes a “precedence” was set in Round 1 – with the difference being Cripps’ has been graded as high impact and not medium like Rioli’s.
“The end of the day, the precedence has been set for my belief when Willie Rioli was let off with Matty Rowell in Round 1. I don’t think there’s been a rule change,” Brown said On the Couch.
“To me, it looked like Willie Rioli was later (in making contact).
“Yes, you can argue that it was a marking contest however it was an aerial contest. One was in play, one was a marking contest.
Longmuir confident yet coy on Freo | 03:48
“They were both scenarios where the player’s had to leave the ground. I don’t think Patty Cripps could do much. I actually think that (Rioli’s) looks worse and was let off.”
Fellow panelist Nick Riewoldt agreed that the Blues needed to use Rioli’s appeal as the basis for their challenge, should they decide to make one by 11am AEST on Tuesday.
“Whether you are jumping in the air in a marking contest or to intercept the ball from a handball is irrelevant,” he said as Brown added: “It should be irrelevant.”
“So they walk in (to the court), you press play on the Willie Rioli tape and you walk out five minutes later – that’s how it should go down,” Riewoldt said.
Brown felt Rioli’s argument that his conduct was “not unreasonable” should apply to Cripps as well.
“The argument for Willie Rioli (was) he couldn’t reasonably expect contact in that situation and obviously had to brace – but so did Patty Cripps.”
Fans were shocked back in Round 1 when Rioli escaped sanction for the hit on Rowell, with some calling on the Eagle to “buy a Lotto ticket”.
Koch statement awkward for Hinkley? | 01:36
Gerard Whateley said the Blues were in the process of preparing for an appeal on Monday night, but didn’t think the Rioli comparison was as “cookie cutter” as some believed.
“First they have to show it’s not a bump. The second part is there an alternative?” he said.
AFL360 co-host Mark Robinson agreed with coach Michael Voss that it was a “split second decision” for Cripps.
“My flinch reaction was: ‘You’re gone Patrick Cripps’ … but I said the same with Willie Rioli,” he said.
“We were gobsmacked at the time they appealed and got off. I don’t think the court can suspend him if they put up the Rioli (vision).
“But my gut feels is you can’t have that in our sport anymore.
Feet rebound from cap scandal | 02:10
“He didn’t mean to do it – but what’s more important? He didn’t mean to do it or the health and safety of Ah Chee?”
On the Couch host Garry Lyon believes Cripps’ actions are worthy of suspension, claiming it was “not a great surprise” the Match Review handed down a two-game ban on Monday.
“It’s a hold your breath moment,” he said.
“I don’t think in this state that we are in and the game we’ve got, if that goes unpunished, then we are kidding ourselves.”
One of New Zealand’s most respected scribes has called for Scott Robertson to replace Ian Foster as tensions reach breaking point across the Tasman following the All Blacks’ 26-10 defeat to the Springboks over the weekend.
“It’s time to ring Scott Robertson, tell him to be waiting with his hand-picked assistants and for him and Jason Ryan to get on with rebuilding a legacy that is in danger of being horribly tainted if there is no definitive action taken,” wrote Gregor Paul in the New Zealand Herald.
“There is nothing now that can happen to convince anyone in New Zealand – anyone who knows the game – that the All Blacks are going to miraculously improve without a total and brutal cleanout and reset.
“Confidence has been shattered, all hope lost and it would be madness for New Zealand Rugby to do anything other than get out the check book, pay off the termination fees and usher in a new era.”
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Calls for Scott Robertson to replace Ian Foster are becoming deafening after the All Blacks slumped to their third straight defeat. Photo: Getty ImagesSource: Getty Images
The strong column comes after the All Blacks slumped to a 24-year first, as the nation slumped to its third straight defeat after previously losing their first home series in 28 years.
The 16-point loss, which was also their fifth defeat from six Tests, will see New Zealand drop to a historic low of fifth when World Rugby updates their rankings.
But, as was pointed out, it was not just the scoreboard that revealed the grim picture, it was the nature of the All Blacks’ defeat.
Foster’s side barely fired a shot.
It took until midway through the second half to get inside the Springboks’ 22 meter line and, for much of the game, they were suffocated by a rush defense that forced errors from the usually highly skilled New Zealand backs.
Malcolm Marx was the chief disrupter for the All Blacks, as the Springboks hooker, playing his 50th Test, regularly got on the ball and turned it over.
Malcolm Marx was awarded player of the match for his stunning breakdown work against the All Blacks. Photo: Getty ImagesSource: Getty Images
The All Blacks only made two real chances.
The first they bombed after some Beauden Barrett brilliance from his own goal-line ended in a terrible forward pass from flanker Akira Ioane near halfway.
The second chance saw Shannon Frizell slam the ball down out wide after Caleb Clarke crashed the Springbok defence, before brilliantly being tackled from behind by a diving Damian Willemse.
“In their defining hour, their day of reckoning, the All Blacks barely fired a shot,” wrote Liam Napier for the New Zealand Herald.
“Mbombela Stadium exploded at the seams with 45,000 screaming South Africans forming a sea of green; a piercing atmosphere. The locals sure had plenty to shout about, too.
“In that white hot cauldron, among the swarming Springboks, on their first venture to South Africa in four years, the All Blacks failed to cope with the relentless aerial and physical assault on their senses.
“It wasn’t the All Blacks were intimidated. It wasn’t they were caught off guard, either. The Boks stuck to their unimaginative kick-heavy, forward-dominated blueprint and executed it to perfection. The All Blacks knew it was coming – and still had few answers.”
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The All Blacks barely fired a shot against the Springboks in their Rugby Championship opener. Photo: Getty ImagesSource: Getty Images
Some of the more colorful writing came from Jamie Wall.
“Here we go again. Another All Black loss in 2022, the third in four tests, another week of mounting pressure on the coaching staff and the people that put them there. The loss was another extension of the gaping wound that is the national side, now festering with pus and infection, stinking to high heaven of defeat and desperation,” Wall wrote for Radio New Zealand.
In his post-match interview, Foster described the defeat as “probably our best performance of the year”.
“We’re bitterly disappointed but I felt it was our most improved performance this year,” Foster said.
“Some of the areas we really shifted our game forward. In a game dominated by defense we defended well but our timing was out a little bit in terms of the attack so we’re going to have to go and have a look at that. There’s a few players over here for the first time feeling the pressure that comes from this type of team.
“We’re pretty excited about the next challenge of playing at Ellis Park for a trophy.”
Wall said that “seems somewhat laughable considering it was the heaviest defeat to the Springboks since 1928.
“But really, the sad truth is that he might be right.
“However, if that’s all there is to brag about, then the labeling of this test shows just how delusional this side is about the way they are playing. As if it wasn’t already, this is a serious crisis that is only going to get worse before it gets better.”
New Zealand’s coach Ian Foster looks ahead of the Rugby Championship international rugby match between South Africa and New Zealand at the Mbombela Stadium. Photo: AFPSource: AFP
Long-time rugby writer Marc Hinton quite rightly pointed out that there was nothing shocking about losing to the Springboks, but he added the heavily one-sided nature to the defeat was concerning. After all, the All Blacks did beat the Springboks 57-0 in 2017 — a match which included eight players in the 23 from the weekend’s 26-10 loss.
“This was a limited, painful and at times gormless performance from an All Blacks side that has completely lost its mojo, its confidence, its rhythm and, to be frank, its wherewithal,” wrote Hinton for stuff.
“Ian Foster’s coaching tenure now hangs by a slender thread after his All Blacks proved patently ill-equipped to handle a superb display of high-intensity rugby from the world champion Springboks.
“The South Africans started and all-but finished this Rugby Championship opener, in front of a passionate, seeing crowd of over 43,000 at Mbombela Stadium in Nelspruit, with players being driven off the field in medi-carts, but in between they applied a massive knockout blow to these reeling All Blacks with a 26-10 victory that was every bit as one-sided as it sounds.
“It is no disgrace to lose to a side of the caliber of this South African outfit. Plenty have over the years, and plenty more will too in days to come. But to go down so decisively, and largely fail to apply anything resembling sustained pressure on their opponents for so much of this one-sided contest, well, it spoke to how far this All Blacks side has plunged.”
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NZRU CEO Mark Robinson (L) has come under fire for overseeing the All Blacks’ struggles on and off the field. Photo: Getty ImagesSource: Getty Images
Meanwhile, the South African media basked in their team’s glory, but highlighted that this was the most “convincing winning margin in the professional era” over the All Blacks.
.
“They may have failed to keep the All Blacks tryless in a Bok win for the first time since the Wellington success in 1998, but the 16-point buffer was by far their most convincing winning margin in the professional era,” wrote Khanyiso Tshwaku on news24.com
“It wasn’t pretty – seldom is the Bok way of rugby – and it is said that only a mother could love how they go about their business.
“However, they earned the love of not just the 42,387 who packed into the giraffe-propped nation, but the entire country. “It was aggressive. It was physical. It was faultless and flawless in every sense.”
Craig Ray, writing for DailyMaverick.co.zasaid the Boks were “dominant, emphatic, claustrophobic and clinical.
“The Springboks have seldom, if ever, dominated an All Black side so comprehensively. Despite a 26-10 final scoreline, the tourists were lucky it was not a lot worse.
“New Zealand hardly had any ball, they lost the aerial battle, they were destroyed on the ground and smothered when they did try to launch attacks.
“All Blacks coach Ian Foster’s time in charge is now surely measured in hours, not days.”
New Zealand’s fly-half Beauden Barrett (2nd R) attempts to get away from star center Lukhanyo Am (2nd L) at the Mbombela Stadium on August 6, 2022. Photo: AFPSource: AFP
Brendon Nel, writing for SuperSportinstead focused attention on the marvelous Springboks.
“You could sense it walking into the stadium. The electricity in the air. The nerves, the tension. So many of us who have arrived at these games before – in places across the world – know there simply is no thing as a bad All Black team. They may be wounded, but they are dangerous. And before the naysayers take out another knife for the now-inevitable demise of Ian Foster’s coaching stint with the All Blacks, let’s say it fairly – This was a magical Springbok performance,” Nel wrote.
He continued: “This was a night that Nelspruit had been waiting for. There weren’t just one or two heroes, but an entire team.This was a night where the ghosts of the past were laid to rest, where the passion and pride in Springbok rugby showed that while there may be those who relish writing them off across the world, those who have turned Springbok-hating into a sport, nothing can stop the heart of a Springbok.”
Fox Footy pundits have called for those at the Adelaide Football Club responsible for the infamous 2018 pre-season camp to take accountability for the wrongdoings, saying the “cover-up is the issue” and the misuse of players’ personal information is “harrowing. ”
Shocking new details of the pre-season camp emerged this week in Eddie Betts’ recently released biography, while fellow former Crows Josh Jenkins and Bryce Gibbs also spoke out on their distressing experiences.
While Crows CEO Tim Silvers, who wasn’t at Adelaide in 2018, apologized to Betts, five-time All-Australian Nick Riewoldt believes current club bosses shouldn’t necessarily wear the brunt of the criticism given many weren’t at West Lakes at the time.
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Jenkins full statement on infamous camp | 15:39
“I don’t know if it’s necessarily about punishing the Adelaide Crows. Because a lot of the people who were at the Adelaide Crows at the time have moved on. So is it fair to punish the Crows?” I have posed.
“I think the responsible people need to put their hand up and actually show some accountability. There were people saying in the aftermath, ‘we laugh at the some of the things we hear about the noise around the camp.’ Well it clearly wasn’t a laughing matter, it was a really, really serious matter.
“Those that were responsible for the investigation and actions need to be held accountable.
“I think actually putting your hand up and being on record and explaining why and how. And why the cover up? Why has it taken four years for this to happen and reach the point that it is.”
Collingwood legend Nathan Buckley agreed that concealing the details of what happened is most damning and concerned players were pressured into staying silent.
“The cover-up is the issue, because I’ve got no doubt the leadership of the Adelaide Football Club didn’t think they were going to undermine the fabric of the organisation,” he said.
“When you hear the anecdotes of the players and the way that information was used, it’s harrowing.
“It seemed to me the way the exit was planned, saying, ‘this is how you should talk about this,’ that there was an element of keeping that in the same little (group).
“Collective Minds, who were the outside facilitators, they’ve been quite litigious with this. They’ve slapped, rigged and tried to quiet this down. I’ve got no doubt it’s been very difficult for the Adelaide Football Club to be fully transparent in some ways, because of the litigious nature of the third party, and that makes it pretty tough for them.”
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Triple-premiership winning Lion Jonathan Brown says it highlights the risks of bringing “outside facilitators” into a footy club.
“At the end of the day if that’s the player’s experience and that’s the way they perceived what happened, you have to take those things on face value,” the ex-Brisbane skipper said.
“It’s a great lesson, you need to get on the front foot and you need to apologize and own up to your mistakes, because people make mistakes all the time.
“I’m not sure about outside facilitators, you’ve got to be careful you bring outside facilitators into your football club. You’ve certainly got to check their CV and make sure what their reputation is and experience, because that was a bad decision for the club to bring them in.”
The AFLPA (Players Association) this week indicated it would effectively reopen its investigation into the pre-season event and contact all players for a “better understanding” of what occurred, saying it would’ve taken more immediate action had it known all the information from the outlet.
However Riewoldt questioned why the players union didn’t probe the incident more thoroughly four years ago.
“Why wasn’t it investigated properly? The people who represent the players — the Players Association — why didn’t they fight the fight properly for the players back then?” I have posed.
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“They’re all questions that need answering… a lot of people have let them (the players) down. But if the Players Association don’t exist to fight for the players in situations like this to protect the players then what do they exist for?”
Former Adelaide coach and current Swans assistant Don Pyke also apologized for the 2018 pre-season camp amid growing scrutiny for his role in it.
Pyke departed the Crows at the end of 2019 and has been linked to several coaching vacancies amid praise for his impact at the Swans, admitting the idea of being a senior boss again was enticing.
Asked if it hurts his future coaching aspirations, Brown said: “It does at the moment, whether it does in years down the track.”
Buckley agreed that “in some ways it does” affect Pyke’s chances in the short term, but pointed out that other coaches have previously pushed the boundaries with programs.
“You think back to legendary coaches of the past, I reckon if you got the worst things they’d done… there’s probably been some pretty average things players have been exposed to in the view of building resilience and being tougher and drawing the group together,” he said.
Under-fire New Zealand rugby coach Ian Foster said he believed his All Blacks team took “a step up” despite losing 26-10 to South Africa in the Rugby Championship opener in Mbombela on Saturday.
Foster, under pressure after the All Blacks lost a home series against Ireland last month, said there had been encouraging aspects in the latest performance.
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The New Zealand team performs the Haka as South African players look on at the Mbombela Stadium in Mbombela on August 6, 2022. Photo: AFPSource: AFP
The loss to the Springboks was the fifth in six matches after three defeats by Ireland and another by France.
Foster has lost nine of 25 matches in charge of the three-time world champions while predecessor Steve Hansen suffered 10 defeats in 107 Tests.
An All Blacks assistant coach during the eight-year reign of Hansen, Foster was a controversial appointment ahead of Canterbury Crusaders coach Scott Robertson.
“It was a step up from our last series,” said Foster.
“The lineout worked well, our maul defense was good and our overall defense was pretty solid but the timing in terms of attack was a bit off.”
Kurt-Lee Arendse of South Africa scores against the All Blacks at Mbombela Stadium on August 06, 2022 in Nelspruit, South Africa. Photo: Getty ImagesSource: Getty Images
He said a string of penalties conceded by the All Blacks in the first 20 minutes had hurt his team.
“I felt we were not getting the rub of the green in the first 20 minutes, so that put us behind a little.”
He said the third quarter of the match, after the All Blacks were fortunate to trail only 10-3 at half-time, it was critical.
“We had to get back into the game but all the Springboks did carry hard and clean hard and earn a couple of penalties. Good on them, that is their game. It is a pressure game.” Foster acknowledged that the intensity of the match played in front of a passionate sell-out home crowd of 42,367 had affected some of the new players in the touring squad.
“Some of our guys who are here for the first time — that is what you have to go through and experience.”
Ian Foster (C) is under huge pressure after the All Blacks lost three straight matches. Photo: AFPSource: AFP
Foster said that although there was not much time before a second-round match against the Springboks at Ellis Park in Johannesburg next Saturday, he was confident of an improved performance.
“As the game unfolded, a few opportunities opened up. There were some handling errors but we made a few good strides. But we have to provide it next week.”
SuperSport TV analyst and former Springbok captain and hooker John Smit said it had been a “commanding performance” by the home team.
“We won the kicking game and the error game. This is a Springbok team that knows what they do well and they stick to it.”
