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Cape Town - Western Province are a bit perturbed by the fact that Balie Swart, a scrum consultant for the SA Rugby Union, has praised the Golden Lions scrum ahead of Saturday's Currie Cup final.
Swart, a former Springbok prop, also helps SARU with the training of referees.
Swart, who was on hand at the Lions' practice this week, said the men from Johannesburg are "a step ahead" of the rest when it comes to scrummaging.
In an interview with the IOL Sport website, Swart said Lions coach Johan Ackermann has a no-nonsense approach regarding the laws at scrum time by making sure his players do everything correctly.
Swart also described the Lions as a close-knit unit, saying for them "it’s a case of all for one and one for all". He said all eight players work together to gain the desired result at scrum time.
WP's Director of Rugby, Gert Smal, is not happy about Swart singing the praises of the Lions and feels his role requires impartiality.
According to Die Burger, Swart has asked SARU's refereeing boss Andre Watson to respond to the comments made by Swart, as it could perhaps sway the perceptions of referees.
But Smal is nevertheless confident that Swart's comments won't influence how referee Craig Joubert officiates the scrums in Saturday's final.
"We trust Craig's integrity and that he won't be influenced by what has been said in the media. He is, after all, one of the top three referees in the world, if not the best," said Smal.
WP coach Allister Coetzee is also confident that Joubert won't be influenced by what has been said.
"Luckily we have the best referee. He won't be influenced by opinions. That's why he's No 1. He'll keep an eye on the scrum processes and reward dominance. It's a case of carefully keeping an eye on both teams and that's how Craig is. He will not be influenced by the pre-conceived ideas of some refereeing assessor he has to keep happy."
Saturday's final at Newlands is scheduled to kick off at 17:00.
Teams:
Western Province:
15 Cheslin Kolbe, 14 Kobus van Wyk, 13 Juan de Jongh (captain), 12 Jaco Taute, 11 Seabelo Senatla, 10 Demetri Catrakilis, 9 Nic Groom, 8 Nizaam Carr, 7 Michael Rhodes, 6 Rynhardt Elstadt, 5 Manuel Carizza, 4 Jean Kleyn, 3 Pat Cilliers, 2 Scarra Ntubeni, 1 Alistair Vermaak
Substitutes: 16 Neil Rautenbach, 17 Brok Harris, 19 Gerbrandt Grobler, 20 Sikhumbuzo Notshe, 20 Louis Schreuder, 21 Kurt Coleman, 22 Michael van der Spuy
Golden Lions:
15 Jaco van der Walt, 14 Ruan Combrinck, 13 Lionel Mapoe, 12 Howard Mnisi, 11 Courtnall Skosan, 10 Marnitz Boshoff, 9 Ross Cronje, 8 Warren Whiteley (captain), 7 Derick Minnie, 6 Jaco Kriel, 5 Franco Mostert, 4 Martin Muller, 3 Ruan Dreyer, 2 Robbie Coetzee, 1 Schalk van der Merwe
Substitutes: 16 Armand van der Merwe, 17 Jacques van Rooyen, 18 Julian Redelinghuys, 19 Willie Britz, 20 Warwick Tecklenburg, 21 Mark Richards, 22 Harold Vorster
Swart, a former Springbok prop, also helps SARU with the training of referees.
Swart, who was on hand at the Lions' practice this week, said the men from Johannesburg are "a step ahead" of the rest when it comes to scrummaging.
In an interview with the IOL Sport website, Swart said Lions coach Johan Ackermann has a no-nonsense approach regarding the laws at scrum time by making sure his players do everything correctly.
Swart also described the Lions as a close-knit unit, saying for them "it’s a case of all for one and one for all". He said all eight players work together to gain the desired result at scrum time.
WP's Director of Rugby, Gert Smal, is not happy about Swart singing the praises of the Lions and feels his role requires impartiality.
According to Die Burger, Swart has asked SARU's refereeing boss Andre Watson to respond to the comments made by Swart, as it could perhaps sway the perceptions of referees.
But Smal is nevertheless confident that Swart's comments won't influence how referee Craig Joubert officiates the scrums in Saturday's final.
"We trust Craig's integrity and that he won't be influenced by what has been said in the media. He is, after all, one of the top three referees in the world, if not the best," said Smal.
WP coach Allister Coetzee is also confident that Joubert won't be influenced by what has been said.
"Luckily we have the best referee. He won't be influenced by opinions. That's why he's No 1. He'll keep an eye on the scrum processes and reward dominance. It's a case of carefully keeping an eye on both teams and that's how Craig is. He will not be influenced by the pre-conceived ideas of some refereeing assessor he has to keep happy."
Saturday's final at Newlands is scheduled to kick off at 17:00.
Teams:
Western Province:
15 Cheslin Kolbe, 14 Kobus van Wyk, 13 Juan de Jongh (captain), 12 Jaco Taute, 11 Seabelo Senatla, 10 Demetri Catrakilis, 9 Nic Groom, 8 Nizaam Carr, 7 Michael Rhodes, 6 Rynhardt Elstadt, 5 Manuel Carizza, 4 Jean Kleyn, 3 Pat Cilliers, 2 Scarra Ntubeni, 1 Alistair Vermaak
Substitutes: 16 Neil Rautenbach, 17 Brok Harris, 19 Gerbrandt Grobler, 20 Sikhumbuzo Notshe, 20 Louis Schreuder, 21 Kurt Coleman, 22 Michael van der Spuy
Golden Lions:
15 Jaco van der Walt, 14 Ruan Combrinck, 13 Lionel Mapoe, 12 Howard Mnisi, 11 Courtnall Skosan, 10 Marnitz Boshoff, 9 Ross Cronje, 8 Warren Whiteley (captain), 7 Derick Minnie, 6 Jaco Kriel, 5 Franco Mostert, 4 Martin Muller, 3 Ruan Dreyer, 2 Robbie Coetzee, 1 Schalk van der Merwe
Substitutes: 16 Armand van der Merwe, 17 Jacques van Rooyen, 18 Julian Redelinghuys, 19 Willie Britz, 20 Warwick Tecklenburg, 21 Mark Richards, 22 Harold Vorster
