The Sharks' domination of the Currie Cup's league stages came against the prevailing tide.
While there has been a general acceptance that an attack-minded, ball-in-hand approach will serve domestic and Springbok rugby well in the long run, Robert du Preez's team have begged to differ. To be fair, they've looked comfortable swimming upstream.
"Too much gets made of ball-in-hand rugby," said Du Preez on the eve of the Currie Cup final. "I want to play winning rugby. If that means we have to kick the ball a lot, we will do that.
"This year we have played to our strength, which is our pack of forwards. Having said that, the backs on occasions have done well with ball-in-hand, so we can do both. We want to build the way we want to play and that doesn't happen overnight.
"We are not a New Zealand rugby team, we're a South African rugby team and we want to play a South African brand of rugby," Du Preez, 54, insisted.
While his team have played to their strengths, other coaches have prioritised method over the men at their disposal.
The transformation of the Bulls, who topped the Currie Cup try-scoring charts under John Mitchell, has been remarkable.
The Pretoria side have helped improve the average number of tries per match in league play of the Premier Division to 8.6 this season.
"The game has sped up and has become more transitional," said New Zealand-born Mitchell, 53. "Agility and the ability to accelerate. The power-to-weight ratio is extremely high and peak speed is almost the same in the 80th minute as it was in the first. It is just an example of how the game has evolved."
For former Bok assistant coach Dick Muir, the shift in emphasis could not have come soon enough.
"There has been an emphasis on conditioning and skills which has been badly needed in South Africa."
Muir believes this was born of necessity.
"Our traditional strengths have fallen by the wayside. It's something we thought has been a strength but turned out to be a weakness," said the 52-year-old. "All the teams are just getting more physical, better conditioned. It's a game of skill, intensity now."
Former Springbok defence coach John McFarland believes a change in the laws has militated against a safety-first approach.
"The tackler can't just get up and steal in any position. He has to face the attack," said McFarland. "Also, it is also a question of when the tackle is completed. We encourage the defender to release but there are a lot of times the leg tackle is made, the attacker keeps on going a little longer. There are a lot of things that are weighted in attack's favour. It makes sense to play with ball in hand."
Lions defence coach JP Ferreira contends South African teams are reacting to pressure. "The public would have seen the exciting rugby New Zealand teams have been playing and then they watch South African derbies. Now the SA culture is changing."
