Speaking on the Sharks website Plumtree explained that Smit “is one of the best Boks ever” in his coaching career and he is by far the “most competitive” player he has ever coached.
“John has a massive year ahead of him; he wants to be the first ever captain to defend the World Cup title What could be bigger motivation than that and he's showed in training that he has the desire to play at the highest level.John is a fine leader – he has the respect of other captains and referees the world over,” added Coach Plumtree.
Super Rugby is going to obviously demand plenty from the teams and depth in the squad with an intelligent rotation policy will see some teams standing at the end of the tournament.
"Super Rugby is a totally new competition and it is a lot tougher than the Currie Cup," said Plumtree. "It is a bigger competition, the games are faster and there are no easy encounters. There is no reprieve. So we are under no illusions about what to expect. It takes a real championship outfit to win Super Rugby and."
Where does this leave Captain John Smit? It will be more of the same as Plumtree is determined to utilize the Springbok in all three positions in the front row and will have to be prepared to switch between prop and hooker as the coach deems nesseccary.
“He is the only player in world rugby who can do that and I will have no hesitation in switching him between the three because I know that he will be fit enough to play any of them,” Plumtree says.
Smit came under harsh critisim by some for his play at tighthead prop, this was because “he was given the poor advice that he had to put on weight to anchor the scrum effectively; this had a negative impact on his mobility. That advice did not come from us, I can assure you.”
One is made to wonder then from where did the advice come from then? Surely not from the Bok management?
