James Dalton was always a combative bugger on the rugby field: if there was trouble happening he was never far away.
The former Springboks hooker has maintained that persona in his post-game career.
His latest shot has been taken at former Springbok coach Jake White, rugby's challenger to John Mitchell for the honour of living out the adage about having had more clubs than Jack Nicklaus.
White has been in discussions with the Bulls to take on their director of rugby position, which has been vacant since Alan Zondagh resigned.
Dalton, a 43-Test veteran with the Springboks, is familiar with White, he was a member of the first team White coached at Jeppe High School for Boys and was responsible for Dalton's transfer from flanker to hooker, something Dalton wasn't happy with at the time.
Dalton, who is publicising his recently-released book, Bulletproof: The James Dalton Story, is worried what the consequences of White returning to a coaching role in South Africa.
He told Nerwerk24, "It's worrying that they're considering bring White back.
"Our rugby is healthy at the moment and do you really want to bring someone into the system who's going to clash with Rassie [Erasmus-the director of SA Rugby] and the new structures, just because he thinks he's Jack White who won the World Cup in 2007?" Dalton said.
Erasmus does have one over White in that regard, at least his team played against the No.1 team in the world, New Zealand, during the World Cup his side won, although it proved a loss for the Springboks.
"Jake is not a people's person," Dalton said.
"He's an autocrat. I'm not saying he's not a good coach, but if you look at the World Cup group of 2007, then there are probably only about six players that want something to do with him.
"You'd think here is a coach who will be admired for his achievements, but the players from that generation want nothing to do with him," Dalton said.
Having White involved could affect South Africa's ability to build on its World Cup success.
Dalton said he believed South African rugby was in a very strong position, to the point where it could emulate the All Blacks in winning consecutive Rugby World Cups.
In their background, Dalton had been a schoolboy star following his transfer to hooker. Before one of the big games of their season, a centennial game against a long-standing rival, Dalton was suspended for one game after a scuffle that blew up after he retaliated for being pushed. The school's stand in suspending him meant he would miss the centennial game and resulted in a full-blooded sit-down strike by boys at the school which was only ended when Dalton was encouraged by the authorities to speak to his schoolmates and to have them return to their classes.
White said, "I doubt any school had a more influential player than him. He was already practising with the Transvaal men's team a couple of times a week."
In his book, In Black and White – The Jake White Story, White said, "Dalton is a tough bloke who has had his fair share of headlines over the years, and not always for the right reasons. But, in his defence, he would never have represented his country as a five-foot-something hooker if he didn't have that mean streak and aggression in his make-up. If he had been Mr Nice Guy, he wouldn't have played for South Africa."
When forcing Dalton reluctantly to move from flanker to hooker, White said, "He eventually relented, but in the first scrum in the front row he shouted to me, 'I'm uncomfortable, coach.' I told him: 'Well, make yourself comfortable.' So he moved the whole scrum on his own just to make himself more comfortable. I knew at that moment he had it all…Athletically he had it all to make it as a hooker. I'm sure he'll admit that I was right. I don't take the credit for making James a superb rugby player, because he always had the talent. But I played a role in him finding his place on the field."
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