Johannesburg - Already in northern Italy since Wednesday, Andries Coetzee will have given his Lions teammates the tour and a pointer or two on the cultural dos and don’ts while in Treviso.
The Lions face Benetton on Saturday in a United Rugby Championship (URC) clash, and one should suspect that the Springbok full-back has relayed some insights concerning his former team as well. Coetzee played for Benetton for a season previously, before returning to Johannesburg to play for the Lions again in September last year.
“I will tell them about the right things to eat with your pasta,” Boeboes said with a smile and a laugh earlier this week. “You don’t really have many options regarding that, or on your pizza.”
“No pineapple on the pizza and no white wine with your pizza … I will show them around. Treviso is a nice little town with a lot of culture.”
On Thursday, Lions scrum coach Julian Redelinghuys chuckled that Coetzee had made good on his word to act as de facto tour guide, and more importantly, also dropped some of that wisdom regarding what makes the Italian franchise tick.
“It has been good to have Boeboes around,” the former Springbok prop said via a media briefing from Treviso.
“He obviously played here for quite a bit. He knows all the good spots in Treviso and he knows a couple of the guys there.
“He knows their character, what they take confidence out of and what frustrates them. That is valuable information for the team to have, and then just to know what you are up against in these conditions on that field.
“However, you can have all the information,” Redelinghuys warned, “but you must pitch up on the day and that will make the difference between getting the ‘W’ or not. It is always good to have someone that knows the city, that knows the people.”
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It was a sentiment that Coetzee’s former teammate Dewaldt Duvenage would agree with. The scrumhalf, along with full-back Rhyno Smith, flankers Sebastain Negri and Braam Steyn, and lock Carl Wegner, make up a talented group of players with strong Southern Africa roots, and will have themselves a degree of foreknowledge regarding what to expect from the visitors.
“Boeboes played with us last season and he will give the Lions some inside info on us and help them to play the conditions in Italy at this time of year,” Duvenage said via a URC statement on Thursday.
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“The Lions have shown that they are back to winning ways after the results against the Bulls and Glasgow. Last year and at the beginning of this year, they showed that they do travel well. They have a strong pack and some good finishers at the back.”
The Lions name their matchday 23 on Friday. Kick-off for the clash at the Stadio Comunale di Monigo on Saturday is 3pm.
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IOL Sport