Under-fire Leinster senior coach Jacques Nienaber received support from his compatriots at the Lions ahead of their URC quarter-final showdown in Dublin on Saturday.
Image: Romain Perrocheau / AFP
There was a running joke this week that the Lions would have to book Leinster senior coach Jacques Nienaber a flight ticket home with them should they pull off a miracle victory over the defending United Rugby Championship (URC) winners on Saturday in Dublin (9pm kick-off).
World Cup-winning former Springbok mentor Nienaber has come under fire again from certain supporters in Ireland following Leinster’s massive defeat in the Champions Cup final against Bordeaux-Bègles this past Saturday.
It has become a common trend for the South African coach to take the blame when the Irish powerhouse loses, while he does not get the same credit when they pull off brilliant victories.
“Everything is Jacques’ fault, it’s terrible to see,” Lions scrum coach Julian Redelinghuys said ahead of their historic quarter-final against the champions.
“We all know the quality coach he is and the value he adds. It seems the people on this side do not appreciate it. In the team, they do, but it doesn’t look like the Irish supporters do, with all the things you see and hear and how they throw him under the bus by blaming him.
“Apparently, he is not allowed to breathe in the coaching box. There are a lot of ugly things. However, we’ve worked with him and know what he can do and who he is. We do not doubt the quality he brings to Leinster, but it doesn’t look like the Irish appreciate him.”
Despite the noise in Dublin after the Bordeaux demolition job in Bilbao, the Lions are wary about the wounded champions. They have had an extended training run in Dublin, and that should bode well for their chances.
But, according to Redelinghuys, they are coming up against an experienced side with plenty of Irish international players. While both teams are known for playing some good running rugby, the knockout nature could turn this into a tactical battle.
“If you look at World Cup finals and knockout rugby, it goes hand in hand with more kicks and playing in the right areas of the field, usually. I think that is why people see it as a more conservative game.
“We want to play in the right positions on the field. They are good with their defence, but we feel we can outmanoeuvre them by playing in the right areas at the right time. That is where the conservative side comes in. It’s about having a balance. Our DNA will stay our DNA, but it’s about implementing it according to what the opposition asks.
“They are experienced and have about 1016 Test caps amongst the players, and when they approach the referee, they maybe feel that they can make comments on calls made by the officials. We can’t control that.
“However, we can control how our captain speaks to the ref at the right time and when it is needed to intervene. We would just like to see the same treatment afforded to us when it comes to things like asking for something to be looked at by the officials.”