White gets unusual ally in Henry

Jake White

SUN CITY, South Africa - Under-fire Springboks rugby coach Jake White has found a supporter in his All Blacks opposite Graham Henry, as the knives sharpen in South Africa for his sacking.

White's job has been the subject of intense speculation this week as his team stare down the barrel of a sixth straight loss when they play the All Blacks in Rustenberg on Sunday (NZ time).

A South African Rugby Football Union (SARFU) board member was quoted as saying two more losses to the All Blacks and Wallabies in the next fortnight would put White in "an extremely serious situation".

Henry admitted he had some sympathy for White, who took over the job at the same time after the 2003 World Cup.

"I respect Jake as a person and as a coach. He's a good man. I think he's reacting very well, with poise and dignity, and taking on the challenge," Henry said.

"I would support Jake White, he's done very well with the South African team and he's going through a bad patch at the moment.

"It's easy to shoot the coach and hope the team comes right but I think Jake's record, apart from the last five games, has been as good as anybody who's coached the Springboks."

Today, the Pretoria News reported SARFU president Oregan Hoskins initiated a move for former Springboks coaches Nick Mallett, Andre Markgraaff, Rudolf Straeuli and Carel du Plessis to meet with White on Thursday and try to "come up with a suggestion for a turnaround".

But that met with a lukewarm response, with Mallett saying he would refuse to attend because it was "a public relations exercise by SARFU" and Markgraaff undecided because he and White have clashed on several occasions.

The job has been a revolving door in South Africa, with 10 national coaches since 1992.

A replacement coach hardly stands out either, with the leading candidate Heyneke Meyer who has coached the Bulls to two consecutive Super 12/14 semifinals.

White was refusing to budge today.

"I won't walk away from this job," he told the Pretoria News.

White names his team in Johannesburg tomorrow with the huge task of trying to lift a team who showed a distinct lack of fight in the second half of their 26-45 loss in Pretoria last weekend.

Henry expected some fresh legs and a change in approach as White struggles with the absence of injured frontline forwards Schalk Burger, Bakkies Botha and Joe van Niekerk.

"I think the South Africans will up for it, there's been a lot of motivational press for them," Henry said.

"I'd imagine they'd make quite a few changes and try to keep the ball in hand at the weekend."

- NZPA