Johannesburg — SOUTH African Rugby Union (Saru) national team manager Andy Marinos yesterday denied there was a crisis in the Springbok camp.

After comprehensive defeats abroad and a week in which coach Peter de Villiers has come under heavy fire, reports of tension between the assistant coaches and murmurs of Jake White wanting to reapply for the position of head coach have muted the welcoming home party for the Boks.

Reports from Brisbane yesterday said Bok forwards coach Gary Gold prefer red a structured game, while backline coach Dick Muir believed the team should play an attacking style of rugby, with head coach De Villiers undecided.

This, it was alleged, was the reason for team's poor showing on their Australasian tour - in which New Zealand and Australia piled 30 points on them in all three clashes.

But Marinos, who was in New Zealand and Australia with the team over the past three weeks, said the reports were unfounded.

Attempts to get hold of De Villiers proved unsuccessful, with the team's media manager referring all queries to Marinos.

"To be honest, I was alarmed when I read the reports," said Marinos. "I was with the team for the last few weeks and I attended strategic planning sessions and reviews, and there was common ground in the coaching team on everything.

"I have also spoken to the coaches and the senior players and there is no truth in these allegations.

"So rumours of a rift in the management team could not be further from the truth."

Marinos admitted that the team did not play well and they had complicated matters for themselves due to ill-discipline in all the clashes.

Lock Bakkies Botha was yellow- carded for a professional foul at the breakdowns in the 13th minute against the All Blacks in Auckland, his replacement Danie Rossouw was sin-binned in the fourth minute of the clash in Wellington for kicking New Zealand flank and captain Richie McCaw on the ground, and centre Jaque Fourie and prop BJ Botha were yellow-carded against Australia for a dangerous tackle and ruck infringements respectively.

"The coaches and players are hurting because they know they didn't have a good tour, especially after being forced to play with 14 men in the first 20 minutes of all three games," Marinos said.

"The discipline issue was raised overseas after Bakkies was suspended, but that is something the players have to work on individually.

"Of course, it is a concern for the coaches and players though, because we have been disciplined in general in the last two or three years. There were a few incidents on the British and Irish Lions tour (last season), but discipline hasn't been a big issue for us in the last few years."

With the senior Springbok players, including captain John Smit, lock Victor Matfield, Rossouw, flyhalf Morné Steyn and flank Schalk Burger, being rested in the next few weeks in order to freshen up for the Tri-Nations home leg starting in Soweto on August 21, Marinos was confident the team would bounce back. "The senior guys have been given some time off in the build-up to the home leg, while other players have been released to their Currie Cup teams, so I believe things will be better over here," he said.

"Playing at home usually provides a huge advantage, which should also assist the team."

Marinos said he would have discussions with the relevant stakeholders regarding Sanzar's judicial process after complaints by the management on tour that the team was being punished more harshly by referees than other teams.

He said the facts would be documented and a formal response would be sent to Sanzar, the governing body of the Tri-Nations and Super Rugby competitions.