Warren Whiteley: I can’t rule out playing again, I just can’t

Warren Whiteley doesn’t want too much alone time at the moment.

“There are days when things are bad, where it’s difficult to accept your set of circumstances. That’s when you don’t want to be alone, because your mind drifts to some dark places.”

You’d forgive the inspirational Lions skipper and Springbok stalwart for feeling a bit abandoned as a professional player.

After boasting an incredible injury record for the first seven years of his career at senior level, the 32-year-old lost out the national captaincy because of a pesky groin problem.

Once back, Siya Kolisi took and wore the captain’s armband with aplomb, but 2019 dawned with his greatest challenge – overcoming a chronic knee injury that, if you want to read between the lines, has probably brought his playing days to an abrupt halt.

“This past year has felt like I’m in a full-on fight every day. It’s been really challenging. I really feel for my wife, Felicity, who’s been taking shots. She’s been the one who’s experienced my darker moods most,” Whiteley told The Citizen at a promotional event earlier this month.

“Everyone is aware how pride works. To be honest with you, at times you just try to hold in the frustration and the hurt. You want to hide from people. She’s the one then that has to deal with me. It’s tough on her, but she’s been absolutely wonderful.”

Mystery surrounds the true state of Whiteley’s injury, something kept so bafflingly under wraps by Lions management one would swear his ligaments contain the US’ nuclear launch codes.

Yet there’s some rationale to adopting such an attitude – no-one, not even Whiteley, knows exactly how that knee will hold up.

“There’s a reason why I’m keeping my options open, why I can’t make a call on my playing career just yet,” he said.

“I’d be lying to you if I told you I’m ruling out playing again. I think about it every day. I dream about playing. Some day I even wish I can!”

So what’s the issue then?

“My knee’s stable. I can stand on it, walk comfortably. But I have precious little cartilage left there. And cartilage can only be removed, it’s not like having an operation to mend a ligament or something,” said Whiteley.

“My knee has – and the medical experts tell you it’s still quite unbelievable – bone bruising. There’s no cure for it, all you can do is rest it. It needs to settle. I know it sounds like a cop-out, but there’s nothing we can do about it. I’ve gathered numerous different medical opinions about it.

“I did my rehab and that’s that. Bone bruising recovery differs from person to person. Some heal quicker, others slower. My knee will dictate when the bruising is gone.”

It’s undoubtedly a rather grim prognosis, one that could’ve sent Whiteley over the edge after a plan to fast-track him back into the Springbok setup in August just before the World Cup squad announcement turned out to be as hopeful as Eskom turning a profit anytime soon.

As one of South Africa’s foremost experts on fitness and conditioning, Lions coach Ivan ‘Cash’ van Rooyen was clearly conscious of what such downtime would do to Whiteley’s psyche.

So he tapped into Whiteley’s biggest burning desire other than the one to play again … coaching.

“I think I can safely say this season’s Currie Cup campaign was the thing that ‘saved’ me, from a mental perspective. Cash called me in and had a simple proposal: come help us out.

“I got such a lift. It was amazing to be shouldered with a new role, one where I can still make a difference in players and people’s lives. I’ve been exposed to Cash, Sean Erasmus, Niel de Bruyn, Julian Redelinghuys and Phillip Lemmer’s coaching insights.

“I’ve been allowed to give input. I’m developing, I always wanted to become a coach and I’ve been given a platform now. I get so much peace helping players get better.”

Given his exposure to a lot of rugby minds over the tears, has ‘Coach’ Whiteley identified a specialist area that he enjoys more than the rest?

“The difficult thing is, I enjoy all the technical areas of coaching!” Whiteley said, laughing loudly.

Julian Redelinghuys (L), Warren Whiteley during the Currie Cup match between Xerox Golden Lions XV and Vodacom Blue Bulls at Emirates Airline Park on August 10, 2019 in Johannesburg, South Africa. (Photo by Wessel Oosthuizen/Gallo Images)

“The Currie Cup campaign maybe gave me too much freedom! I gave input on everything! General attack though is obviously something I enjoy immensely. I guess that stems from my leadership positions as player. You don’t just play the game, you’re engaged in a chess match of sorts too.

“You call plays. You have to prepare strategies during the week. As players, we’ve been empowered and by design every player becomes a rookie coach of sorts. I love attack, I love the lineouts and I love defence.

“I do probably have one weakness as a coach, which are soft skills. The De Bruyns are unbelievable in that regard. I’ll work on that. Coaching has enriched me. I’m so busy. I keeps me positive.”

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