SA Rugby to review 2016 before making any changes

• Georgia get the better of Samoa
• Boks hit rock bottom, lose to Italy
• As it happened: Italy 20-18 Springboks

Cape Town - Less than an hour after the Springboks' shocking 20-18 loss to Italy in Florence on Saturday, SA Rugby president Mark Alexander released a statement to the media. 

The initial reaction of many may have been that he was about to announce the sacking of coach Allister Coetzee. 

Instead, Alexander expressed SA Rugby's disappointment with the result and confirmed that a review of the season under Coetzee 

would be taken at the end of the year. 

Alexander said that it was the responsibility of everyone

 involved in SA Rugby to look within themselves in trying

 to remedy the current Bok situation while he also said

 the blame could not be laid at "one door or another". 

Alexander's full statement:

“The whole of South African rugby is extremely 

disappointed with this year’s Springbok results and 

deeply worrying aspects of the performances. 

It has not been good enough and no one is pretending

 otherwise.

“We have a minimum target of winning three out of four 

test matches each season – which is better than the 

historical record – but we have not come close this season.

“It would be easy to lay the blame for that at one 

door or another and look for scapegoats but it would 

also be an oversimplification.

“All of us within South African rugby need to look at 

ourselves and ask what we could have done differently 

in aid of the Springbok cause.

“Those questions will be asked at the end of the 

season when we will undertake a full review of the

 year and what new interventions may be needed

 to turn things around.

“We began that work recently with the coaching indaba. 

It set out to align national and Super Rugby coaches 

on the technical, tactical and conditioning requirements 

to succeed in 2017 and beyond.

“We also have to review such things as how we manage

 the fact that so many of our leading players are now 

based outside South Africa and more are being lured there.

“No group of individuals is more concerned or disappointed

 right now than the Springbok team and management. 

We know they are better than this.

“After that it is our job to take steps to do as much as 

we possibly can to make sure we are not in a similar 

position in 12 months’ time. Our focus is on solutions 

and finding answers to our current problems.

It's to say but no rugby nation FEAR the Springboks anymore.Peace