Sunday, 28th October 2007 at 10:42 am

Thabo Mbeki joins Springbok management

Nothing’s been made official yet, but as usual Feverpitcher has the inside track, and so can break the post-World Cup story of the year: Thabo Mbeki is set to join the Springbok management team after his successful secondment to the team in France. The proof, lest our word not be taken as gospel, is in the photo, the President clearly seen in his new team blazer (Eddie Jones is apparently sulking furiously after Mbeki got a blazer and he didn’t), raring to take up his new job.

“The President got a real buzz from being out on the field, congratulating the players, celebrating the win,” Feverpitcher’s presidential source told us in a muffled voice in the small hours of the morning. “And you could tell how much of an impact he had by the response of the English players - they were so furious that the Springboks had a genuinely rugby-loving leader in Mbeki, while all they had was the charmless Gordon Brown, that half of them refused to shake Mbeki’s hand afterwards. Thabo beats Gordon fair and square, no doubt.”

Exactly what Mbeki’s role will be with the Springboks is still to be confirmed, but as Feverpitcher understands, the President is keen to assist with overseas tours, away legs of the Tri-Nations, and tournaments on foreign soil; he will assist at home games on those rare occasions when he is in South Africa, but that is expected to be infrequent. Feverpitcher will give you further news as we hear it, including any substance to the rumours that the President will be bringing in the Minister of Health to work with the front row…