Vodacom Super Rugby
Mitchell to meet top brass
2011-05-03 17:31
John Mitchell (Gallo Images)
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Johannesburg - Lions coach John Mitchell will discuss the recruitment of additional players with the union's top brass on Tuesday evening, the coach revealed at his team announcement in Johannesburg earlier in the day.
Mitchell will have discussions with Lions president Kevin de Klerk and CEO Manie Reyneke on acquiring the services of a few players he thinks the union needs to be more competitive on the field.
"Clearly I'm looking to invest in our future. There are already proposals out in terms of the positions I want to strengthen," said Mitchell.
This comes after the former All Black coach urged the union's investors to "put their money where their mouth is".
Recent reports suggested that Mitchell was interested in buying a team.
He denied the claims and said he was only looking to sort out a few key areas of concern.
"The majority of the player group is here; it is just a matter of strategically placing some players in certain positions that will move us forward," he said.
Meanwhile, Reyneke told a Sunday newspaper that he was surprised to learn Mitchell had challenged investors Robert Gumede and Ivor Ichikowitz of the Guma Group to provide him with the personnel he felt he needed to get his team back to winning ways.
He highlighted that it was not simply a case of going out and buying players off a shelf.
Attempts to lure Springboks John Smit and Tendai Mtawarira were unsuccessful while the procurement of Racing Metro's Frans Steyn was passed on to SA Rugby.
The Lions were dealt a few heavy blows prior to the arrival of their billionaire investors and subsequently had to watch several world class players moving to greener pastures.