The Lions were quick to defend Jacques Nienaber from the heavy criticism he is receiving.
Bordeaux-Begles head coach Yannick Bru and Leinster defensive coach Jacques Nienaber prior to the Champions Cup Final last Saturday. Picture: Juan Manuel Serrano Arce/Getty Images
The Lions were quick to defend former Springbok coach Jacques Nienaber, who has been under fire since Leinster’s defensive capitulation against Bordeaux-Begles in the Champions Cup final last weekend.
The Irish giants were thumped 41-19 by the star studded French powerhouse, who impressively defended their title.
Leinster will now be looking to bounce back from that disappointment when they take on the Lions in their United Rugby Championship (URC) quarter-final at Aviva Stadium in Dublin on Saturday, to help quieten the noise around their defensive coach Nienaber.
Earlier in the week during a virtual press briefing, Lions scrum coach Julian Redelighuys firmly stood up for Nienaber, saying the criticism of him was ridiculous.
“Yes, everything is apparently his fault,” joked Redelinghuys.
“It’s actually terrible to see how the people (blame) him, because we all know just how good he is and what he means to a team. It feels as if the Irish don’t value him for what he does for the team.
“Inside the team they will know what he contributes and they will value that contribution, but outside it doesn’t look that way, especially if you see the way he gets thrown under the bus every time the team loses.
“Apparently he isn’t even allowed to breathe in the coach’s box. There is a lot of ugly stuff being said about him but we know him, we have worked with him and know who he is. We have no hesitation in knowing what he can add to a team, but it doesn’t seem they look at it that way.”
Full focus
Although they feel sorry for Nienaber, the Lions’ full focus will be on adding even more pressure to beleaguered Leinster, by dumping the defending URC champs out of the competition on their home turf.
Loose forward JC Pretorius will be making his 50th international appearance for the Lions in the match, and the former Blitzbok star is eager to help his team make history by winning their first ever play-off match in the URC.
“Coming from the sevens, I never thought I would get to 50 caps for the Lions, but playing this weekend will be a real honour,” said Pretorius.
“If you look at our last two (pool) games (losses against Leinster and Munster), it was a weird feeling after the game because we knew we could’ve done better. Looking closely at those games, we missed opportunities to convert pressure into points. Leinster scored a couple of tries at the death, but throughout that game, it was quite close.
“But the good thing about being on tour for so long is that the guys get to know each other better and spend a lot of time together. That brings you closer. The guys have also looked after their bodies. Training has been going well and the guys are gelling.”
