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While SA Rugby is still mulling over the future of Springbok coach Allister Coetzee, the Zimbabwe Rugby Union (ZRU) seems to be on the verge of appointing Peter de Villiers as their new head coach. The charismatic De Villiers, who coached the Boks with great success from 2008 to 2011, looks like the front-runner for the Zimbabwe job after agreeing to take the country's Under-20 team through their paces this week. De Villiers is believed to be one of four candidates shortlisted for the Sables coaching position. De Villiers, the last coach to win a series over the British and Irish Lions (2009) and also the last Bok coach to beat New Zealand in New Zealand, has strangely not had a top coaching job since the 2011 World Cup in Australia. Over the last few years he has done some consultancy work for a corporate company in Namibia, and last year released a coaching book. But it looks like De Villiers has got the inside lane for the Sables job, although he isn't quite focussing on that the moment.  "It's a great honour to be in Zimbabwe. The coach of the Under-20s gave me a call to help him with some of the technical stuff, as they badly want to qualify for the World Cup. I think I added some value to the boys," De Villiers said in an interview with Kwesé Sports TV. "I'm only focussing on what's happening here today. If the (head coach) job comes around, tomorrow, next week or the year after that, I will be ready. "But I don't want to interfere in the structure of the union. I'm only focussing on helping the Under-20s for now. I think I did a great job, because these boys are leaving with information that they never had before." Zimbabwe Rugby Union chief executive Sifiso Made told Kwesé Sports TV the Sables are targeting a place at the 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan. Zimbabwe will take part in the Africa Gold Cup tournament later this year, which also doubles as qualifying matches for next year's showpiece event. "For us it's massive to have Peter here. You must understand the pedigree of the man -- he has coached the Springboks -- and one of the most successful coaches around," Made said. "For him to say 'yes Zimbabwe, I'm available', is a great treat for us. Peter is a friend of Zimbabwe and he was more than happy to spend some time with us here." Having De Villiers on board would certainly a massive boost for the Sables, who will hve to see off teams such as Kenya and Namibia if they want to make it to Japan. However, the ZRU still have to go through the process of appointing a new coach. Nothing has been cast in stone as yet. "We have advertised for a head coach and interviews will be conducted shortly. I can tell you we have listed four potential candidates and one of those will take us forward," Made said. "This will give our Sables the best chance to prepare for the Gold Cup, which also doubles as the World Cup qualifiers. Failing that, we can build for France 2023 with confidence."
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