Jake White

Jacob Charles White (born 13 December 1963 as Jacob Westerduin) is a professional rugby union coach and former coach of the South African national team – the Springboks – whom he coached to victory in 2007 Rugby World Cup and the 2004 Tri Nations. White also coached the Under-21 Springbok side to victory in the Under-21 World Cup in 2002. Quotes I don't say that lightly because Os to me is probably the best loosehead prop South Africa has ever had and probably one of the best the world has ever seen. Bok star Gerhard Steenekamp on the comeback trail but Bulls won't rush his return,May 2025,SABC SPORT by SABC SPORT For me, there’s a reason we go misty-eyed at talk of the ‘dark arts’ of scrummaging,. After a game, I often see front rows sitting together at post-match functions having a beer and locked in deep conversations about the scrum battle. Both sides are looking for an edge. They’re looking for an achilles heel to exploit any weakness. No one is saying one team is cheating, it’s maybe more that the All Blacks have cottoned on to what the Springboks are doing. Ultimately, it boils down to a robust technical debate. Everyone is making such a big deal of it, but they say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery and that’s what we’re perhaps seeing at scrum time. Yes, rugby is constantly evolving but at the same time maybe there should always be mystery at scrum time. To my mind, to depower it would be egregious.” Jake: All Blacks cottoned on to Bok tactics, September 2026,SA RUGBY MAG by Reporter Ultimately, it boils down to a robust technical debate. What would happen if two teams were doing exactly the same, by walking left? The scrum would automatically veer left. No one is saying one team is cheating, it’s maybe more that the All Blacks have cottoned onto what the Springboks are doing. They are a different breed and I love that about rugby. In my view, in those dark recesses, where even cameras can’t peer, you’d be naïve to think everything was above board according to rugby’s law book. I ’m not saying anyone is in the wrong, but anyone who has played and coached the game knows skullduggery goes on there. Whether you go too high or too low, whether you scrummage sideways, use your feet or don’t use your feet, use your head or your neck, scrum at 45 degrees across your body, to the left and the right. I could go on. Everyone is making such a big deal of it, but they say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery and that’s what we’re perhaps seeing at scrum time. It’s funny, a mate of mine said the other day that, ‘if you’re a thief and you don’t get caught, it doesn’t mean you’re not a thief’. T here is a mystique around the secrets of the front row. It’s a bit like the KFC recipe by Colonel Sanders. No one will ever know exactly what goes into the recipe or it loses its uniqueness. It makes you smile to think, maybe the All Blacks listened to Doc at the bow of a boat all those years ago and it’s now part of their classified intellectual IP. As I’ve always said, having coached at the highest level, the art of coaching is to try and stay ahead of the curve. To find a way play on the edge, so if the law is ‘x’, you try to find out how you can do ‘x’ as well as possible and push the boundaries. Kitch Christie initiated law changes and Rassie Erasmus has affected law change while Springboks head coach. That’s the quintessential art of coaching. After all, Test matches are about pitching the best against the best. The margins are miniscule Coming back to Doc, one of his most famous quotes was, ‘the most important player on the pitch is the tighthead, and the second most important player is the reserve tighthead. ’ That rings true today, as much as it did in his hey-day. The more things change, the more they stay the same. If South Africa’s super-powers are blunted, they need points from elsewhere and many people have asked me why Sacha (Feinberg-Mngomezulu) isn’t kicking for poles. Is it the ankle injury, or are they not sure his kicking percentages are ready for Test rugby yet and don’t want to overburden him as he’s managing the game? I’d say it’s the latter and they’re lucky they have Cheslin (Kolbe) as backup because Manie (Libbok) for all his talents, isn’t renowned as a Test kicker off the deck Alongside the set-piece, keeping the scoreboard ticking over with a reliable kicker is one of the fundamentals of being a coach. Look at the World Cups. The Jonny Wilkinsons, Joel Stranskys and Dan Carters of this world win you tournaments. Since July, the Boks have maybe left more points out on the field than they’d like. Their accuracy hasn’t quite been there, so with Handre Pollard not selected or injured, they’ve decided they need guaranteed points from the boot They have commendable strength-in-depth, but there have been a few murmurs at the quality and age-profile at No 9. I’m not inside the squad, but I still think Rassie will stick with tried and tested at scrum-half, so Cobus Reinach and Grant Williams, with Morne van den Berg in the wider squad Having a world-class 9 is imperative. If you look at the most successful teams in the world, the spine of the side, 2, 8, 9, 10 and 15, most rugby fans can name the World Cup winning players in those positions. I remember Butch James saying that with Fourie (du Preez) playing at 9, you could play anyone at 10. He was that good. That’s why with the Duponts, Lucus and Gibson-Parks, if they play well, the team usually plays well. And now you have Cam Roigard in that bracket. Jake White: What people are reliably getting wrong about the scrum, September 2026, RUGBY Pass, by Jake White External links Category:Rugby union coaches Category:1963 births Category:Living people Category:Sportspeople from South Africa Category:People from Johannesburg