Tim Visser insists players not coaches to blame for Saracens calamity

Published on 17/10/2012 02:47

TIM VISSER says that the players and not the coaching staff should shoulder responsibility for Saturday’s calamitous defeat to Saracens. And the winger has urged Michael Bradley to give the culprits in that humiliating 45-0 loss a chance to redeem themselves against Munster on Sunday.

“We’ve just had a chat amongst the players and we all agree that we do firmly believe in the coaching staff and the way they like to play. We are letting them down with our unforced errors and the way we are approaching the game at the moment,” he said.

“It should be an easy fix because it’s just about individual players doing their job – holding on to the ball and those little things. So I’m a firm believer that we can turn things around for the weekend, because it’s not like it’s the system is not working or we are not in sync with the coach. It’s literally down to individual players.

“The only problem with that is that we can chat about it as much as we like but it is all down to actions.”

“There is a lot of talent throughout the group, but to make massive changes is not the answer. It is time for the players who are getting selected to step up,” he continued.

“It is important to make sure that people own up to what they have done. Accountability is a very big thing for us. We’ve gone through this process during the last couple of weeks, because the loss away at Newport was a big hit for us, and then not getting any points against Treviso last week. So we’ve had these sessions and we’ve had that honesty, the problem is the actions at the moment.”

Visser sustained a bang on his knee towards the end of the first half of Saturday’s game and was replaced during the break – so he wasn’t involved when things really spiralled out of control. He is quietly confident, however, that he will be fit again for the weekend and is determined to play a full role in helping rescue Edinburgh’s season.

“This wouldn’t be a first. We’ve had a few games with Edinburgh when we’ve lost it, and it is usually due to inexperience and younger players having to step up and not making the mark, but the problem at the moment is we need our senior players to perform better – and that includes myself,’ he said.

“Going away to Munster is never an easy task, but Thomond Park is a great place to play. It’s a brilliant stadium, the pitch is world class and the atmosphere is great. If you can’t get motivated for games like that you can’t get motivated for anything. If we can do it anywhere, it will definitely be there.

“Munster haven’t performed anything like they have in previous years. They have made a lot of changes to their squad but you can’t underestimate them. They have a lot of quality in that team. They will be desperate just like us, and it will be a very big game and the team which is most clinical is probably going to win it. It is not going to be fancy out there. It is going to be a very physical contest and I am really looking forward to it.”