Province 'pick themselves'
Western Province coach Allister Coetzee believes his new Currie Cup leadership group of Deon Fourie and Marcel Brache "picked themselves".
Coetzee named Fourie as captain and the relatively inexperienced Brache as vice-captain on Wednesday, explaining that their places in the team are unlikely to be threatened this season.
He explained: "I think it is important that leaders must select themselves first, not because of their leadership but because of what they do in their positions.
"I think Deon [Fourie] had a fantastic Super Rugby campaign, Marcel is very close to ten [flyhalf] and with Juan de Jongh and Jean de Villiers out of the side I think he is the other centre that selects himself," he said.
Coetzee said that having a forward and a back as leaders is vital to the balance of the team as it allows them to operate effectively as a unit on the pitch.
"With Deon being a hooker and being on the ground a lot we need someone who is on his feet and who can help out with the calls and tactics," he said.
The Stormers coach said that although there are more senior players in the backline he is not keen for an outside back to have to take up a decision-making leadership role and added that he has confidence in Brache's skills in this department.
"Gio Aplon and Joe Pietersen are senior players but they are way too far from play and therefore the 12 is the ideal person. Marcel's leadership ability speaks for itself.
"He is a good communicator and he has got great organisational skills so I have got no doubt that these are the right candidates to lead this province," he said.
Fourie said that sharing the captaincy responsibilities with Tiaan Liebenberg last year prepared him for taking the job on full-time this year and added that although hooker is his favoured position he is willing to play anywhere to suit the needs of the team.
"It is nothing new, me and Tiaan [Liebenberg] rotated last year as captain so it is not a new thing on my shoulders.
"There are a couple of senior okes still in the team that can back me, the thing is to just get all the new okes on par," he said.
Western Province squad: Don Armand, Deon Carstens, Tertius Daniller, Rynhardt Elstadt, Deon Fourie (Captain), Yaya Hartzenberg, Brok Harris, Tyrone Holmes, Steven Kitshoff, Nick Koster, JC Kritzinger, Tiaan Liebenberg, Frans Malherbe, Siyabonga Ntubeni, De Kock Steenkamp, Jebb Sinclair, Wilhelm van der Sluys, Alistair Vermaak, Duane Vermeulen, Gio Aplon, Ederies Arendse, Craig Barry, Marcel Brache, Demetri Catrakilis, Kurt Coleman, Damian de Allende, JP du Plessis, Dewaldt Duvenage, Burton Francis, Nic Groom, Dean Hammond, Berton Klaasen, Tshotsho Mbovane, Joe Pietersen, Louis Schreuder, Heinrich Steyl, Gary van Aswegen, Gerhard van den Heever.
