Coach John Dobson and captain Ruhan Nel have slammed the incessant online abuse directed at Stormers players. LINDIZ VAN ZILLA reports.
Dobson did not hold back when addressing so-called “keyboard warriors” during Friday’s press conference.
“I genuinely don’t read it,” he said. “But when you see it, it’s unbelievable. People who know nothing about our process or what a player is going through – whether an injury or their family – feel free to assassinate someone’s character.”
The Stormers boss expressed concern about the personal nature of the online vitriol.
“To say this guy is shit and shouldn’t be part of the Stormers, and that La Rochelle is not far enough away for Salmaan Moerat …
“Social media has changed things dramatically,” he added. “I don’t read it. I read the mainline articles which I have no problem with because these are guys who grew up in journalism and have some fairness and audi alteram partem [hear the other side].
“But this world where you can assassinate a person’s character like that based on absolutely no information and it’s published … it’s there in black and white …”
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“The world that the youth operate in now is so binary – if you’re not with me, you’re against me, then you hate me, and I hate you. It’s just a bilge.
“I wouldn’t like to be Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu now, I wouldn’t like to be Warrick Gelant. What’s he done wrong? Made mistakes on a rugby field? He hasn’t gone and invaded a country and strung nuns from a tree. But that’s the sort of level of abuse you get now.”
Dobson highlighted the demands of playing professional rugby.
“These guys are under a lot of pressure every week, even if there wasn’t social media. They are under pressure to perform physically on the field. There’s a reason there are ambulances, doctors and defibrillators at games. That’s just the rugby side.
“Then you’ve got the added stress of someone telling you, or your kid reading, that you are shit … from some expert sitting in his dressing gown.”
Dobson cited the example of former Stormers flyhalf Manie Libbok, who he said was “absolutely crucified” on social media.
“The guy couldn’t handle it … he’s in Japan now.
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“Sacha is going to be a generationally great Springbok for South Africa,” Dobson added.
“We are going to look back, there’s going to be autobiographies, movies and we are going to think what a player, how privileged we were to have our own Dan Carter.
“So I don’t understand what you achieve now by saying he is shit or got no BMT or whatever.”
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Nel acknowledged that criticism is part of the game, but stressed there must be limits.
“We understand the emotional investment from the public,” he said. “If I miss a tackle or throw a forward pass, I’m open to criticism.
“It becomes a problem when it gets personal. Once you start threatening players, getting into people’s character, that is crossing a line.
“No one goes out there trying to make mistakes,” he added. “It’s not a perfect world when you are out on the field, there are a lot of moving parts.
“I’ve knocked the ball. Everybody’s knocked the ball or made the wrong call. The best players in the world have done it and they’re going to do it again.”
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Photo: Ashley Vlotman/Gallo Images
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