It is said in South African rugby that when the Stormers and Bulls are strong, then South African rugby is strong. Well, the good news is the game is in rude health in Cape Town and in Pretoria.
The Japanese league was never a consideration back in the day, but factor in big name World Cup-winning Springboks based there, and the South African game is even healthier.
Add the presence of several world-class players for the Galacticos in Durban and Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus is going to inherit a big group of players enjoying their rugby, in form, well-conditioned and ready to defend their global position as the number one team in the sport.
It is Saturday morning, so I don’t have the luxury of the Bulls’ performance against the Dragons or the Sharks hosting of the Scarlets.
I expect the Bulls to win comfortably and the Sharks to raise more of a sweat in winning. Glasgow are unlikely to trouble league leaders Leinster in Dublin, so when you read this the quarterfinal match-ups will be confirmed — and it should be the Warriors at home against the Stormers and the Bulls (second) and Sharks (third) at home against seventh and sixth-placed teams.
Biggest movers
The Sharks, this season, are the biggest movers among the South African teams in the four-year history of the league, and the change of fortunes from last season’s 14th place finish to a top four is to be applauded.
The Stormers and Bulls have emphatically been South Africa’s best in the United Rugby Championship (URC), and they have hosted all three finals, with the first two in Cape Town and last season’s in Pretoria.
The two South African giants also contested the first ever URC final, which the Stormers won.
The consistency and similarities in results between the Stormers and Bulls is uncanny, with the Stormers, over four league seasons, totalling 243 league points and the Bulls 245, for a season’s average rounded off to 61 points for both clubs.
Top-four finishes
The Stormers have won 46 league matches; the Bulls 48 and the former have lost 22 and the latter 24. The Stormers have also played in four drawn matches. The Bulls have finished top four three times and the lowest league position has been sixth. The Stormers have two top-four finishes, including one top two, and two fifth places.
This season has been the Stormers’ toughest challenge and the achievement in finishing in fifth place, and qualifying for next season’s prestigious Investec Champions Cup, cannot be overstated.
The Stormers fell foul to the injury gods, the suspension slayers and Father Time in the biggest way in the past six months. John Dobson started the season the envy of every other coach, with Steven Kitshoff, Frans Malherbe, Brok Harris and Neethling Fouche his front-row options and Damian Willemse, Manie Libbok and Sacha-Feinberg Mngomezulu his generals at No 10.
Forced to retire
The reality turned out to be different. Kitshoff never played a game, and a neck injury forced his retirement. Malherbe played just a handful of matches and remains sidelined with injury, Fouche was the victim of a great injustice in being suspended for the past month, and veteran Brok Harris, the ultimate warrior, was forced to retire a fortnight ago because of a knee injury.
Of the No 10 generals, all three were sidelined for at least 50% of the league season and Friday night’s 34-24 win against Cardiff was rare, as all three were available for selection.
Veteran Springbok loose-forward Deon Fourie fought back from a year on the sidelines, through injury, only to be sidelined again after a handful of appearances, and Bok blindside flanker BJ Dixon was another floored by injury.
It is a damn fine effort for the Stormers to have ended fifth in those circumstances, as it has been from the Bulls, given the injuries they also had to leading players.
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