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Cape Town - Springbok prop Tendai "Beast" Mtawarira says his comments on former Springbok coach Peter de Villiers need to be taken in context.
This comes after Mtawarira claimed in his new book, Beast, that De Villiers was out of his depth as Springbok coach when he occupied the role between 2008 and 2011.
However, late on Tuesday, Mtawarira released a statement along with the book's publishers where they clarified the statements regarding De Villiers.
The statement from the Bok prop's publishers reads: "The "Beast" documents his relationships as they are - multi-dimensional - and while he may be critical regarding some aspects regarding key figures throughout his life, he also shares his experiences with those same individuals that challenge him, and those that built him up and nurtured him throughout his career.
"A few commentators who have had pre-launch access to the book have honed in on one paragraph, that they interpret as critical of former Springbok coach Peter de Villiers. However, when they focus on a short extract, they fail to provide context within the greater journey of the rugby player.
"It is disappointing that commentators have failed to look comprehensively at the full story, which details the support De Villiers has given to Mtawarira over the years and the respect Mtawarira has for the man who helped him on his Springbok journey."
Mtawarira added in the statement:
"Peter was the coach who first picked me for the Springboks, and he stood by me through all the trouble with the Minister of Sport, so I’m really grateful to him."
In the paragraph which caused the uproar, Mtawarira wrote:
"He was a fantastic coach of the Junior Springboks, but I think at the high level he was probably lucky that a very good group of players was handed over to him."
Mtawarira was referring to the fact that De Villiers had inherited Jake White's 2007 World Cup winning team with senior players like Victor Matfield, Fourie du Preez, Schalk Burger, John Smit, Bakkies Botha, Danie Rossouw, Jean de Villiers, Jaque Fourie, Bryan Habana and JP Pietersen ruling the roost.
Mtawarira added: "His methods and approach didn't really work with the Springboks, and as players we had to be careful what we said to the media. What you said would get back to Peter and affect your place in the team. The media did not like Peter and thought he was a bit of a clown.
"There's no doubt that he was happy to be at the forefront of a team that could operate on its own steam. Most of the work was done by the players, with (assistant coaches) Dick (Muir) and (Gary) Gold very influential."
Hey guys a lot has been said/insinuated the last few days regarding my soon to be released book.
— Tendai Mtawarira (@Beast_TM) June 18, 2019
Here’s a joint statement from myself and my publisher @PanMacmillanSA . Have a good evening pic.twitter.com/iTaHsKbZBD
