MARK KEOHANE | Boklash: Bakkies, as only he can, was just telling it like it is

Bakkies Botha is revered in France.

South African rugby’s famed Enforcer arrived in France after the 2011 World Cup and in the next four years won three European titles and the Top 14 with Toulon. He would also play for the Springboks against France in Paris in 2013, and in an even greater irony, he would replace an injured Eben Etzebeth early in the match. The Boks won 19-10 and it was Botha’s first ever win against France in France.

This week rugby’s social media community has been buzzing because of Botha’s comments (to French rugby newspaper Midi Olympique) about Etzebeth’s time at Toulon and the latter’s decision to seek an early release and sign for the Sharks until 2027.

The French rugby media have always been awed by Botha, as a player and as a person. They love the way he played the game and they love the way he never holds back on an opinion about aspects of the game, including those who play it.

Former Toulon and French coach Bernard Laporte famously described Botha as the player he idolised the most as a coach and said that if he could have been any player, it would have been Botha.

Obviously, he was not made for France and he will turn his back on the problems the club went through to return to SA. I regret he only shows his best face with the Springboks. In Toulon, he is still a little injured, concussed and in the end, never plays.

—  Bakkies Botha on former Springbok teammate Eben Etzebeth

The French rugby media has been scathing of Etzebeth’s lack of game time for Toulon, through international unavailability and because of injury. So too has the Toulon president, who questioned the value of Etzebeth’s contract in relation to his on-field return.

Botha was asked to comment on Etzebeth’s impact at Toulon and there is nothing untoward, agenda-based or insulting in what he said. He described Etzebeth as the best lock in Test rugby in 2021 and as having had his best season with the Springboks. He added that his former teammate had never transferred that form or presence to the Toulon jersey and that he had not left a legacy at Toulon.

“Obviously, he was not made for France and he will turn his back on the problems the club went through to return to SA,” Botha said in the Midi Olympique interview.

Botha praised Etzebeth for being an incredible fighter for the Springboks and was emphatic that he has much love for him as a player and person, but his sentiment was one of regret in how Etzebeth’s time played out at a club that is as dear to Botha’s heart as his beloved Bulls.

“I regret he only shows his best face with the Springboks. In Toulon, he is still a little injured, concussed and in the end, never plays.”

Take the emotion out of the situation, that of the iconic Botha commenting on his international successor, because what Botha has said is supported with statistics.

Etzebeth’s brilliance is at a prime when he plays for the Boks and, whereas most 100-Test players would have played between 300 and 400 first class matches, Etzebeth’s ratio (99 international matches, including 97 Tests) and 114 first-class games is at a ratio of one to one.

The Sharks have invested in Etzebeth until 2027, but in pure match terms, how many times will he play a season for the Sharks?

It was a similar situation that influenced Montpellier’s decision not to not extend Springbok flyhalf Handré Pollard’s contract. Pollard is one of the best Test flyhalves, but because of serious injuries his matches at Montpellier from signing in 2019 until the end of December 2021 were limited to 16, which worked out at Montpellier paying Pollard an estimated R1.3m a game.

Pollard, so important to the Springboks’ 2019 World Cup success, averages seven Test matches a year, while he has averaged an additional 10 first class matches a year since his professional debut. The point raised with Pollard was that while he has been a powerful presence when playing for the Springboks, the return on investment has not been as favourable elsewhere.

England’s Owen Farrell averages 17 club and 10 Test matches a year since his debut, New Zealand’s Beauden Barrett 14 club and 10 Tests a year and professional rugby’s two most prominent No.10s playing returns were also decidedly more, with Wilkinson averaging 18 first class matches a year in his 323 appearances and eight Tests a year (97 in his career). Carter, who played 112 Tests, averaged nine Tests a year and 12 additional first-class matches.

Pollard and Etzebeth are two of the best Springboks of the past decade and they are World Cup winners, but two of SA’s current finest are considered flops in France because of injury and minimal game time.

This is what Botha was referring to and, while the sensitivities were boiling over on social media and Etzebeth tweeted Botha to remind him on his Springboks code of honour in speaking out against another teammate, and of his phone number, Botha, in being interviewed, merely called it as it is when it came to Etzebeth and Toulon.

There was no sanitised response and sugarcoating from a player who is the most decorated in professional rugby’s history in silverware won. There was brutal honesty in Botha’s response, which is everything one would associate with a player who consistently delivered every season throughout his 345-match career when playing for the Bulls, Toulon and the Springboks.

Mark Keohane is the founder of Keo.co.za, a multiple award-winning sports writer and the digital content director at Highbury Media. Twitter @mark_keohane