Cape Town - Springbok coach Peter de Villiers must either “shape up or ship out”, says COPE MPL Ndzipho Kalipa, spokesperson for Sports, Recreation, Arts and Culture in the Gauteng Legislature.

Kalipa believes that De Villiers is to blame for the Boks' woeful performances on the field of late.

De Villiers’s performance appraisal at the end last month revealed that the coach has failed to deliver a winning team, at a critical time of the season. The loss of the Tri-Nations was an added blow to the downward spiral.

In comparison, the Boks succeeded in five out of six Tri-Nations matches, clenching the champion’s title effortlessly, last year. This year has seen the opposite play out, with the squad losing five out of six matches in the Tri-Nations and virtually handing the Mandela Cup to the Wallabies.

“It’s perplexing to see the route that the Springbok team is taking. We are clearly witnessing a down-grading in the team’s performance ever since coach Peter de Villiers succeeded former coach, Jake White,” said MPL Kalipa.

Kalipa believes that the team requires fresh, new blood in the form of young, aspiring players who are more energetic and possess the speed and resilience that some of the more experienced players lack.

“The structures that the team have put in place were dismally executed and it was clear that some of the veteran players seemed tired, though they gave it their best shot,” Kalipa concluded.