Mallett calls for tournament revamp

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Posted: Thursday October 07, 1999 05:56 PM

Nick Mallett plans to compensate for weak group matches with tougher practices. AP

EDINBURGH (Reuters) -- South Africa coach Nick Mallett hit out on Thursday at the structure of the World Cup, saying too many teams were taking part.

Mallett, speaking before his side's pool A match against lightweights Spain at Murrayfield on Sunday, said: "I believe we should go back to 16 teams in the finals."

The Springbok coach suggested the current 20-team format, along with poor seedings, had led to a series of mismatches and would deprive his side of adequate preparation before the next round.

"Spain and Uruguay would be ranked in the 17-to-20 group. It's a disproportionate pool," he said. "We should have England, South Africa, New Zealand and Australia seeded to go through to the final."

Mallett, whose side overcame their one real test in the pool stages by defeating Scotland 46-29 last Sunday, said his team would have to rely instead on hard training sessions.

"We'll prepare for the quarterfinal by training against one another. It's good for defense drills and for ball retention," he said. "It will be very, very competitive but that's good for discipline, communication and team spirit."

South Africa will almost certainly meet the loser of the England-New Zealand match in the quarterfinals.

Mallett would not predict who he expected to face, saying: "It's 50-50. Whichever team we meet, it will not be an easy quarterfinal for us. Both teams are sides who could be in the final.

"It is extraordinary that we should be meeting either of these teams in a World Cup quarterfinal. It should never happen again."

 

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