Latest news with #Nienaber
The Irish Sun
07-07-2025
- Sport
- The Irish Sun
Leinster rocked as senior coach Jacques Nienaber linked with shock return to South Africa
LEINSTER senior coach Jacques Nienaber has been linked with a potential departure from the province, according to reports. The news comes despite him still having a year left to run on his current contract with the Advertisement 2 Leinster senior coach Jacques Nienaber has been linked with a move away from the province, according to a report 2 The South African has been vital in implementing Leinster blitz defence - and is contracted to the URC champions for anothe year The 2023 The Dublin-based province lost in the Now, speculation has emerged that Nienaber could return to South Africa. Advertisement read more on rugby A report from White left his position following the Nienaber is said to be on a four-man shortlist that includes Johann van Graan, Franco Smith and Johan Ackermann. And in a further worry to Leinster, according to the Rapport report - they have already made contact with the Northern Cape native. Advertisement Most read in Rugby Union Any move would likely require a buyout, as Nienaber remains under contract with Leinster and the IRFU until spring 2026. The Leinster senior coach has previously denied any chance of him leaving the province whilst under contract with the four-time European Cup winners. Craig Casey shares hilarious 'fear' weighing on him before captaining Ireland for first time vs Georgia
Irish Daily Mirror
15-06-2025
- Sport
- Irish Daily Mirror
Fears growing at Leinster that in-demand Jacques Nienaber is on way out
There are growing fears that Jacques Nienaber is on his way from Leinster - and that there is an announcement scheduled for the coming days. The South African, who has spent two full seasons at the Irish province, has been the subject of initially tentative enquiries from French, England clubs and South Africa Rugby, that have now gathered significant pace. These approaches stem from the fact neither Nienaber, who's signed his current deal to July 2026, nor Leinster, have released details of an extension. "Jacques has been part of two Springbok World Cup winning squads and yet is still only an assistant coach at albeit one of the best clubs in the world," says a rugby insider. "But Leinster are not, and never will be, prestigious wage payers and he could probably treble, quadruple his money at some of the bigger Top 14 clubs or at one or two English clubs, depending on their owners' whims." Moreover, the idea that Leinster have finally shaken the trophy winning monkey off their back will add to Nienaber's lustre and Jake White's ringing endorsement last Saturday of the Leinster defence won't have fallen on deaf ears. "It would be wrong of me not to say Jacques' defence was outstanding. We tried bashing their line. They kept us out just before half time and it must have been a massive boost for them. "Credit to Jacques and the defence. We were a little bit one-off instead of running with numbers, people around the ball, but that's what happens when you're under the pump against a good team. 'Just tonight you saw the added value that he does as a defence coach. He's well, well known as that and he made it difficult for us. "We scored seven points and we had scored the second most amount of points in the competition this year and last year it was the most, and the year before it was the most so it just shows that they've obviously bought in to that element of their game. "Stuart Lancaster had a philosophy that was an attack philosophy, Jacques has come in and obviously tightened the defence and now the jigsaw puzzle is coming together because you haven't moved away from attacking and your defence has become much harder to break down. "You have to give credit where credit's due. Out of the three finals, this is by far the toughest final we've had. "Make no bones about it, they've gone another level up. That was Test rugby. It's like everything is in fast forward." The feeling inside the the rugby world though is that Nienaber, if he is set on leaving, has already been approached, knows the destination but, in respect to Leinster, it has been kept in-house. "Jacques is a very conscientious individual and would not want the story at the back end of a season which was fraught with difficulties in Leinster's case, to get diverted to being about him," continues the rugby source Nienaber has previously ruled out returning to South Africa but Rassie Erasmus is keen to have his former colleague as part of the coaching staff - possibly as Head Coach - for a crack at a third successive Rugby World Cup title in 2027 with South Africa. "I don't think Jacques owes Leinster anything, he contributed very much to their success this season. "But with a potential extraordinary treble on offer with South Africa or the possibility of becoming a €1-million per season coach at a wealthy French club the question starts to come down to what he thinks if best for his career and family in the long run." The question as to whether SA Rugby could afford Nienaber is moot, they are already paying Rassie Erasmus 15m Rand (€750k) per annum. French Top 14 clubs have a budget of €7m to allocate to 'coaching staff' any way they see fit while former Munster Head Coach Johan van Graan is estimated to be earning around €600k at Bath. As White says, there would be no shortage of contenders to fill his post should it become vacant. Leinster's machine will purr along nicely and it is nothing like as simple for Bulls. 'All credit to Leo too for bringing in guys like that. Where to for the Bulls? We've got to find ways in which we can catch up because I repeat, Leinster aren't going to come back towards the field. Leinster are going to keep moving forward. 'It's a bit like a Formula One racing car, if your pit stop is three seconds and theirs is two, and you think when you get it to two you could catch them but they've probably on 1.3 by then and you're still behind. 'So credit, as I said, Jacques has added that and I'm sure Leo will find other things they need to get better at. "Our job now is to make sure that we can find ways to fast track whatever we can fast track so that we can compete because we're going to find it hard to beat teams like Croke Park and Aviva if we don't catch up the things we need to catch up.'
The Irish Sun
03-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The Irish Sun
Amy Huberman cracks cheeky joke about Brian O'Driscoll after fabulous seaside Bank Holiday getaway
AMY Huberman joked about how husband Brian O'Drsicoll "caught crabs" over their Bank Holiday weekend getaway to Wexford. The golden couple topped up their respective tans by heading to the sunny south-east where they visited the beach as well as met up with friends. Advertisement 5 Amy used this photo as inspiration for her punchline on Instagram Credit: @amy_huberman 5 The pair savoured the good weather over the long weekend Credit: @amy_huberman 5 They took in some of the county's most renowned sights while down there Credit: @amy_huberman 5 They caught up with a few pals as well as 'catching crabs' Credit: @amy_huberman Sharing a photo of The Finding Joy actor later posted a full photo album from the trip that was entitled "Flex in the Wex." Her followers approved of their itinerary as a whole. One hailed: "Lovely sunshine down in Wexico!" While Catherine recalled: "Cahore for the crabbing always great fun after mass of a summer Sunday growing up." Advertisement Read More On Irish Sport Brian will likely be basing himself in Dublin this weekend, and the Aviva Stadium to be exact, as he'll be cheering on his former club side in their URC semi-final against Glasgow Warriors. However, assistant Jacques Nienaber insists the After the Scarlets triumph, Cullen made reference to the Saints game, particularly how the Blues need to get a better handle on this latest semi-final encounter. Advertisement Most read in Rugby Union The former lock conceded: 'People were looking ahead. Everyone's looking ahead. Everyone is. Supporters, staff were trying to look too far ahead. 'So it was a real harsh lesson for us, but it's about making sure we learn from that.' 'Jack Crowley he's coming for you' jokes Peter O'Mahony's wife Jess as son practices his rugby skills But for two-time World Cup-winning coach Nienaber, The South African said: 'Maybe with Leo, but not for me. For me, it's water under the bridge. Advertisement 'Not one ounce of energy from me personally put into thinking about the Champions Cup semi-final is going to change anything — except the lessons you learn. So maybe he referenced that. 'There would definitely be stuff we could have learned and that's definitely something we can bring into that. 5 Brian, 46, was decked out in this summer outfit for their day on the beach Credit: @amy_huberman 'Maybe his angle was more that. That there's lessons that we learn in that the last knockout game that we played before last week was obviously Europe.' Advertisement Leinster have fallen at the URC penultimate hurdle in each of the last three seasons and Josh van der Flier is a doubt for their latest final quest. The 2022 World Player of the Year was withdrawn after just 30 minutes of Saturday's quarter-final. The flanker was suffering from a hamstring injury. The 32-year-old is being assessed this week before a decision is made on his availability. But Nienaber is keeping his fingers crossed the openside will be fit to face Glasgow at the Aviva Stadium. Advertisement The assistant coach said: 'We hope for clearance. He went for a scan on Sunday but I don't think they've come back yet. 'I am fingers crossed, toes crossed, everything, that he can make it. It would be nice.' Garry Ringrose (calf) and Tommy O'Brien (foot) are also set to be assessed in the coming days but both centres were back running last week and are close to returns.
The Irish Sun
03-06-2025
- General
- The Irish Sun
Jacques Nienaber reveals Ireland stars are injury doubts for Leinster ahead of Glasgow Warriors URC semi-final
LEINSTER assistant Jacques Nienaber insists the Champions Cup semi-final defeat by Northampton is water under the bridge as the Blues eye another last-four hurdle. 2 Leinster have not reached the URC final since 2021 when they won it 2 Van der Flier was forced off due to injury after 30 minutes due to injury in that quarter-final After the Scarlets triumph, Cullen made reference to the Saints game, particularly how the Blues need to get a better handle on this latest semi-final encounter. The former lock conceded: 'People were looking ahead. Everyone's looking ahead. Everyone is. Supporters, staff were trying to look too far ahead. 'So it was a real harsh lesson for us, but it's about making sure we learn from that.' But for two-time World Cup-winning coach Nienaber, that Euro defeat does not linger. Read More On Irish Rugby The South African said: 'Maybe with Leo, but not for me. For me, it's water under the bridge. 'Not one ounce of energy from me personally put into thinking about the Champions Cup semi-final is going to change anything — except the lessons you learn. So maybe he referenced that. 'There would definitely be stuff we could have learned and that's definitely something we can bring into that. 'Maybe his angle was more that. That there's lessons that we learn in that the last knockout game that we played before last week was obviously Europe.' Most read in Rugby Union Leinster have fallen at the URC penultimate hurdle in each of the last three seasons and Josh van der Flier is a doubt for their latest final quest. The 2022 World Player of the Year was withdrawn after just 30 minutes of Saturday's quarter-final. The flanker was suffering from a hamstring injury. 'Jack Crowley he's coming for you' jokes Peter O'Mahony's wife Jess as son practices his rugby skills The 32-year-old is being assessed this week before a decision is made on his availability. But Nienaber is keeping his fingers crossed the openside will be fit to face Glasgow at the Aviva Stadium. The assistant coach said: 'We hope for clearance. He went for a scan on Sunday but I don't think they've come back yet. 'I am fingers crossed, toes crossed, everything, that he can make it. It would be nice.' Garry Ringrose (calf) and Tommy O'Brien (foot) are also set to be assessed in the coming days but both centres were back running last week and are close to returns. One player Leinster cannot look to on Saturday is Tadhg Furlong, who missed the last-eight win over Scarlets with a calf injury. The Wexford man remains in line to feature on his third Lions tour this summer, but Nienaber acknowledged it has been a frustrating season for the tight-head prop, who has been restricted to just eight appearances for club and country. Furlong played only the final 33 minutes of Ireland's Six Nations campaign, against Italy, because of a lower leg injury. But this latest issue is with the other calf. Nienaber added: 'I can't talk for him, but I assume it is a tough year. 'You like to get a string of games and build on your confidence — get the team to get confidence in you and you get confidence in yourself and the team. I think it is frustrating.'
Eyewitness News
03-06-2025
- General
- Eyewitness News
'Winkgate': Nienaber defends Sharks' Hendrikse in row over gamesmanship
JOHANNESBURG - Former Springbok coach Jacques Nienaber has weighed in on the infamous "winkgate" incident from this past weekend. In what has inexplicably become the biggest scandal in the sport, Sharks scrumhalf Jaden Hendrikse is accused by Munster supporters, and others, of shameless gamesmanship and violating the so-called #RugbyValues. Hendrikse has been blamed for faking a cramp to distract Munster kicker Jack Crowley during the penalty shootout between the teams in their URC quarterfinal on Saturday. SuperSport's cameras showed Hendrikse winking at Crowley as he was lying on the turf and receiving treatment, which incensed Munster and Irish supporters. Crowley managed to get his kick over, and the moment had little bearing on the outcome as the Sharks converted all their kicks to win 6-4. Hendrikse is a player Nienaber knows very well, having handed him his Bok debut in 2021 and included him in the 2023 Rugby World Cup-winning squad. While many online accused Hendrikse of being underhanded and much worse, Nienaber, who is now a coach at Irish powerhouse Leinster, put the incident down to being a normal part of the game. "The banter, or whatever you want to call it, trying to get into the opposition's head, is something that happens throughout the game. You try to do it physically, you try to do it with your mouth, you try to do it at set piece, a lot of things, rubbing guys' hair, faces in the ground, it happens throughout the 80 minutes," said Nienaber Nienaber said he'd come across Irish players who've engaged in similar behaviour and said they're amongst the best at it. He referenced an incident between New Zealand and Ireland in 2022 where a sledge from one of the Irish players, Peter O'Mahony, aimed at All Blacks captain Sam Cane is said to be one of the biggest motivators for the All Blacks in their win in the quarterfinals the following year "You are masters at it, the Irish… The Irish have never fell on their mouths, ever. You ask if Irish players do it? Wasn't there a thing about Pete [O'Mahony] and Sam Cane? So, there's your answer," said Nienaber. Nienaber's Leinster is preparing for the URC semi-finals this weekend, where they'll host the defending champions Glasgow Warriors on Saturday afternoon.
