Sharks captain ignores golfing omen

When mid-range handicapper John Smit went golfing with the Sharks this week he expected to rattle his team-mates.

Instead it was the Sharks and Springbok captain who got the shakeup.

"It was terrible, I had to raise my bat for the first time in years," Smit said about his three-figure scoreline.

"There were no excuses. I had the best set of clubs there and I am on a 16 handicap and usually dangerous on that."

Ask Smit if he thinks the golf might have been a portent for tonight's rugby at Eden Park, like any decent sporting leader, he bridles. You would expect that from someone who led the unfancied Springboks to a rare Tri-Nations title last season.

Smit is back to lead the Sharks against the Blues tonight after a three-week break to cure a tender knee. He brings a vastly-changed side from the one which was walloped last week by the Chiefs, one which looks inferior to that which started that match.

So how does Smit, the 27-year-old hooker and captain, approach the match, how does he motivate and cajole his troops?

"You could give yourself a lot of mumbo-jumbo about things but we have to accept we have been a team which has not performed up to standard," Smit said.

"Against the Brumbies we went well but not for the full 80 and we have to get back to that, we have to stick to our tasks. We have only had short periods when we have sparked but other than that we have been below Super 12 standards."

It was a testing time, especially for a young rugby squad. When there were repeat defeats it became a downward spiral and that played on players' minds.

Those troughs mirrored life. There were tougher moments mixed with many good times. The test was to keep going, to keep believing, he said.

Was Smit more concerned at the overload of South African sides in the bottom half of the table? What did that mean for the Tri-Nations series?

"I think it is easier for us to get our Springbok side right than it is for some of the Super 12 franchises. But you might fancy being Graham Henry right now rather than Jake White."

The bright side was that, unless there were some remarkable fortune changes, most prospective Springboks would get some time off to freshen during the Super 12 playoffs.

South Africa had been the poorest of the three Sanzar nations in the Super 12 but that had not diminished the nation's interest in the series.

He argued that a fifth franchise next season could strengthen rather than dilute the standard of rugby in the Republic. Far fewer strong players would escape the selectors' gaze.

Being in New Zealand for the announcement of the Lions squad had helped him realise how big that visit would be. Smit was unsure when the Lions would next visit South Africa but he hoped his body and ability would last that long.

He said if he was a betting man "it would be stupid not to put money on the All Blacks at home".


JOHN SMIT

Born: April 3, 1978

Height: 1.88m

Weight: 116kg

Super 12 debut: v Waratahs 1999

Test debut: v Canada 2000

Test caps: 39