Northern Edition

Select Edition

Northern Northern
Southern Southern
Global Global
New Zealand New Zealand
France France

Man who axed 18 Saracens 'mercenaries' has no fears for club's future

Maro Itoje

Brendan Venter and Schalk Brits, two of the architects of Saracens’ success, have dismissed fears that looming job and pay cuts will seriously undermine the club’s bid to avoid relegation from the Gallagher Premiership in the wake of the salary cap scandal.

ADVERTISEMENT

Venter, the former Saracens director of rugby, axed 18 players including All Black lock Chris Jack on what became known as “Black Monday” in 2009 as he dramatically changed the culture of a club that has since won five Premiership and three Heineken European Cup titles.

Brits, a member of South Africa’s 2019 World Cup-winning squad in Japan, spent a decade at Saracens and helped forge the close bonds that are now under strain by the need to cut costs and dismantle the squad.

The reigning English and European champions were fined £5.3million and docked 35 league points for failing to comply with the £7m salary cap over the last three seasons and Edward Griffiths, the interim chief executive, is currently working to identify how they can show the rest of the Premiership the club is operating within the cap.

Saracens are 18 points adrift at the bottom of the league and will face the next five rounds of Premiership games without their England players who will be involved in the Six Nations.

(Continue reading below…)

Ellis Genge spoke to The Rugby Pod over the festive period in a brilliantly candid call. He spoke to Jim Hamilton and Andy Goode about his contract negotiations at Leicester Tigers and the way that he deals with scrutiny on Twitter

Video Spacer

Wales full-back Liam Williams is heading back to the Scarlets while back row forwards Calum Clark and Michael Rhodes – plus Argentina prop Juan Figallo – appear likely to follow him out of the club as the wage bill is trimmed.

ADVERTISEMENT

It is a troubling time for everyone involved with Saracens but Venter told RugbyPass: “The team we took over 2009 was not the current side. It was a broken team full of rugby mercenaries. This team is a proper rugby team that has been galvanised over ten years and my hope for them is that they prove the world wrong and that it was not about money at Saracens. It was the way people treated us with respect and looked after our families.

“I am sure that the current group, even if they have to make sacrifices, will still perform and that will be the biggest compliment to Nigel Wray (the club owner) despite having to go through so much in a year. My message to the players, who are my friends, is that here is the best chance you are going to get to show the world it was not about money.”

Brits is also adamant the Saracens “family” will not be torn apart by the current problems and said: “There is always a bigger picture at Saracens and it is never just about rugby. It is also about how they look after their players and even if they let guys go they will make sure there is some other option.

“In 2009 there was the Black Monday when they got rid of a big portion of the squad but they tried to put those people in a position where they had another option and Saracens will never leave a player out on the street.

ADVERTISEMENT

“Even if Saracens go down – so what? It is the people that make a club and they will bounce back from this. The aim at Saracens wasn’t to win things, it was to make memories together and winning is a product of that.

“One thing is certain: at some point, you will have to stop playing rugby and Saracens is a club that thinks about the person and that is why I speak so highly of them.

“The guys they have in the squad means it has a great character and the beauty of the club is everyone will be taken care of from a future perspective. That is how they looked after me and when I joined I was asked what was my plan after rugby and worked with me on this.

“This is a club that brought in three days of training and said on one of the other days you either spend it with your family or get work experience to expand your next career. I worked in London because the club was concerned about my next career which starts here in South Africa on Monday.”

WATCH: RugbyPass have made something truly special with the Barbarians rugby team – the documentary will be released on January 12

Video Spacer
ADVERTISEMENT

LIVE

{{item.title}}

Trending on RugbyPass

Comments

0 Comments
Be the first to comment...

Join free and tell us what you really think!

Sign up for free
ADVERTISEMENT

Latest Features

Comments on RugbyPass

R
RedWarrior 20 minutes ago
Three-way race to be number one in World Rugby men's rankings

IF SA and NZ win then its 1,2,3 SA/NZ/IRL Otherwise as you were. This is largely irrelevant beyond bragging rights.


As I have pointed out elsewhere the practical use of the Rankings is to determine the seedings bands for the RWC draw. The draw takes place early 2026 and hopefully the rankings will be taken from then.


Important to be in the top 6, the top 12. (and likely the top 4).

This is because there are now 6 groups in the RWC 2027.

If you are in top 6 you are in Seeding Band 1. That means none of the other top 6 will be in your group.

Seeding Band 2 are teams from 7-12, who will have a top 6 team but no other 7-12 team.

After England's defeat by NZ there is clear water between NZ in 3rd, France in 4th and England in 5th. England are desperate for top4, ill come back and explain why later.

Lets look at Seeding Band 1 and 6th place. If you make 6th, no top 6 team is in your group, you are top dog. If you win your group, you won't be facing a top 6 team in your 1/8th final, you will be facing a weaker team. If you fail to make 6th place you WILL have a top 6 team in your group and if you don't win your group you WILL (probably) meet a top 6 in the 1/8 final. That's massive.


Its Argentina holding 6th now. Assuming England hold 5th, then its a 4 horse race for 6th. Argentina, Scotland, Italy and ...Australia. (ranked 6,7,8,9)

Australia play the Lions in NH summer 2025 they are running out of time to get up to 6th for their own RWC. They MUST make a move now. They must beat Wales and they really must beat Scotland to gain points and take points off them. Could they surprise England or Ireland? England may be the better bet but Schmidt knows Ireland so well having masterminded their downfall in France.

Another one to watch is Italy V Argentina. Italy are ambitious and they will want to start pushing the likes of Argentina. If they win this they are still in the hunt. Well worth a watch either way.


Top4: I think the top 6 will be seeded, all the way through from the draw. If thats the case then the top 4 will be seeded to avoid each other until the semi. Good for more certainty around ticket sales etc. That's a possible reason why England want in there. You're not in there you are hitting a top 4 team in a QF. That's an extra 50:50 match you can do without and avoid by being top 4.


Lets look at what Seeding bands might look like with todays rankings:


Seeding Band 1

IRE/SA/NZ/FRA/ENG/ARG

Seeding Band 2

SCO/ITA/AUS/FIJ/WAL/GEO


Sample Aussie strongest pool opponent and 1/8th final opponent if in top 6

Strongest pool opponent: FIJI

1/8 final opponent GEORGIA

Prognosis: advance to 1/4 and potentially beyond


Sample Aussie strongest pool opponent and 1/8th final opponent if NOT in top 6

Strongest pool opponent: SOUTH AFRICA

1/8 final opponent NEW ZEALAND

Prognosis: You know the prognosis


I am pretty sure this is not lost on Joe Schmidt?


Keep in mind when enjoying the matches.

1 Go to comments
G
GS 1 hour ago
Are the All Blacks doomed to a 70% flatline?

The key is realising this AB side is not what they are now but what they will be in 2025/26.


You can already see a Power bench forming, and I would highlight that people watch the AB XV game vs Munster and watch Fabian Holland - he, in the next 24 months, will be WC and bring some huge physicality to the team.


Then, aligned with Peter Lakai, probably at 7, another WC talent, the AB pack by 2026 will probably both be starting and on the bench - be rated as No 1 or 2 packs in the world.


Then, there is the usual WC talent around the backline, and the missing link is Mo'unga. Unlike in last year's WC, the coming forward pack for the ABs, is similar to the Bok pack, It will be packed full of power, and the key to this is a realitively young pack.


So I think we will lose to Ireland and France in the coming weeks, but watch out as this pack builds into - I mean, look at the tight five and loose forwards that are coming for the ABs - De Groot, Lomax, Williams, Tosi, Taylor, Ofa T, Samson T, Aumua, Patrick T, Barrett, Vai, Fabian H, Setiti, Lakai, Savea, Frizzell (understand they are attempting to get him and Mo'unga back), Blackadder, Papalii and bar Barrett, Savea, Patrick T, Taylor - pretty young in international terms.


Huge front row starting and on bench, Power locks and usual class in loose forwards - only missing ingredient is a WC 10 and with Mo'unga back probably in 2026, these ABs are trending in a very healthy direction.

89 Go to comments
TRENDING
TRENDING Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii strikes awe as Wallabies lose star midfielder Suaalii strikes awe as Wallabies lose midfielder
Search