Dan Retief
A journalist friend and I once discussed a possible book with the title “I Was Told…”
In it we would relate all the fascinating tales, purported to be fact, we were told on our travels around the oval world.
You know the kind of thing. Beer in hand, a bloke says quite seriously, “I was told that so-and-so couldn’t go on tour because he tested positive for doping.”
“Who told you that?” enquires the trained reporter in you.
“A mate of mine who is good friends with the province’s doctor,” comes the reply.
And there you go. No facts. No leads. Pure speculation which becomes an urban legend in the telling.
I could count on the fingers of one hand the number of times these kinds of pub fictions have led to a publishable news piece.
So forgive me for relaying the following two gems. I have no sources, no facts – only two chaps I met for the first time over a few beers at Parkview Golf Club. One relates to Heyneke Meyer and the other to the Springboks’ shock loss to Japan.
My first informant said he had “It on good authority” (there you go!) that Heyneke Meyer would be appointed for another four years.
The reason being, is that “Someone at SARU” had guaranteed Meyer the post before Peter de Villiers was appointed.
When SARU were compelled to give the job to a black coach a “Deal” had to be struck with Meyer. To prevent him from suing the union, he was promised the head coach job for eight years after De Villiers.
My informant even claimed that that was why Meyer had been relatively inactive as a coach from 2008 to 2011, and that SARU had paid him a salary during this time. Pressed for sources I got the usual “I can’t tell you but I have good friends at the Blue Bulls.”
We can wait and see.
The other story is even more far-fetched.
The Springboks’ shock loss to Japan was apparently all part of a much bigger plan to rescue the 2019 World Cup and bring later benefit to South African rugby.
This is how it shakes out. With arrangements for Japan’s World Cup in four years’ time stalling, a scheme was hatched whereby the Boks would lose to the “Brave Blossoms” to provide instant visibility for rugby in the Land of the Rising Sun, and enormous impetus for the tournament.
In return sufficient votes would be garnered for South Africa to be awarded the World Cup in 2023!
“You don’t really believe that do you?” I asked the man after he had sincerely rattled off his conspiracy theory, but he was unmoved. “Wait and see,” he replied, “And when the 2023 World Cup is awarded to South Africa we can talk again.”
Ah well I suppose a little levity is in order after the seriousness of the World Cup.
Reminds me of the time in a pub in Cape Town, in 1995, when an Aussie fella sidled up to me and said: “Here’s a tip-off for you. South Africa, New Zealand and Australia have banded together because of a huge sponsorship from Rupert Murdoch’s News Limited. Rugby in the southern hemisphere will go pro before the end of this World Cup.”
And we all know how that turned out…
Haha, what utter BS this is!
And I thought that the players that were retiring after the World Cup had bet on the game, at 40 to 1, it could have put together a nice retirement package