Jake White on Goosen: 'I feel sorry for him'
SPOTLIGHT: The Bulls’ Director of Rugby Jake White has called for “patience and understanding” when it comes to Johan Goosen’s form.
The 30-year-old flyhalf was named in a 26-man Bok training squad this week, after he recently made his return to the field for the Bulls in the United Rugby Championship.
After being out of action for almost a year with a knee injury, Goosen has not been at his best and fans have been questioning his inclusion in the Bok set-up.
“I feel sorry for him,” said White.
“People have this expectation that he is just going to arrive on the field and wave a [magic] wand and be the best player in the competition.
“He was on fire last year. He was by far the best player in the competition last year and then he was out for 11 months.
“I have never coached a guy that comes back from an 11-month injury and immediately pulls the strings. I don’t think the best players in the world have done it.
“He has a burning desire to get back into the national team.
“I don’t think he is where he wants to be, but in life, there are opportunities that come at different times and you have to be good enough and tough enough to take them.
“One thing I do know is that he is tough enough and he is driven enough.”
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Too little games
White admitted that he would have liked Goosen to get more games under his belt before getting back into the national team.
“It’s not ideal, but he is going into a good team.
“He is going to a Springbok team that is the world champions and he is going into a team that is settled.
“Ideally you want him to have lots of games under his belt and you want him to be playing like he was playing this time last year.
“He beat the SA ‘A’ side on his own when we played them in Cape Town and that was with all overseas-based players.
“I signed him until 2026 and that is why I handle him as I do.
“I’ve got a long-term plan for him, but our goal was always to get him back into the national setup.
“That was part of the talk I had with him when he joined us.
“I hope that the public is as patient and understanding of the fact that it takes a while for a player to fire at that [top] level.
“It doesn’t just happen overnight”.
White added that he tried to manage Goosen’s return with the greatest care after that lengthy lay-off.
“I was very conservative with his training and his rehab,” White explained.
“I didn’t want him to come back too early and then get another knee injury.
“It would be very difficult for him to come back from that. That is why he has played so little.
“I wanted him to be ready for November and the end of the year for us. I think he is five or six games short from being his best.”
When asked if he had been in contact with the Bok coaches about Goosen, White replied: “I think you are going to have to ask them that question.
“I am not going to phone them.”
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