VIDEO INTERVIEW: The leaf Mongalo wants to take out Nienaber's Bok book
Two coaches made their Currie Cup debuts – as head coaches – this past weekend. One was more successful than the other.
Bulls coach Edgar Marutlulle started his term at Loftus Versfeld with a humbling 15-63 loss to the defending Currie Cup champions, the Pumas.
Just over 600 kilometres to the southeast in Durban, Sharks mentor Joey Mongalo got off to a winning start against the tournament newcomers, the Griffons – winning 32-16 after a scrappy start.
The contrasting starts probably say as much about their coaching philosophies as it does the quality of their teams.
Marutlulle admitted that he styles himself on the traditional Bulls way – relying on a dominant forward pack to lay the foundation and playing an aggressive style.
Mongalo, in contrast, is fortunate to have been exposed to different styles in a coaching career that started taking off at the Lions in 2011 (in the youth structures and ended as defence coach of the Super Rugby side), then the Bulls (2020 to 2022) and the Sharks (since July 2022).
“When I was with the Lions’ Super Rugby team and coach Swys [de Bruin] was there, I saw what a fast-paced game can look like and what success you can get from an attack-minded game,” he said.
“My experience at the Bulls in the URC was of a forward-dominated, maul game with physicality and good defence.
“Now, at the Sharks, it is about respecting the type of player we have and also the conditions.
(Article continues below Joey Mongalo interview …)
“If people haven’t played in Durban they won’t understand – it is very different from anywhere else in South Africa. It is a combination of using past experience and the conditions here in Durban.
“Lastly, for me, I am a career defence coach – for the last 12 years.
“I want the team to defend in a way that structurally looks good, but also the character of the group – that they show they care about each other.”
Mongalo said his personal goal is to ‘grow’ as a coach.
“A desire of mine is to grow as a head coach, in a similar mould to a Jacques Nienaber – who is a head coach, defence coach,” he told @rugby365com.
“I like that mould.
“I want to learn what it is like in the boardroom, learn what it’s like dropping players, selecting players – all those mixes you don’t see as an assistant coach and get protected from.
“I want to really grow in that space.”
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