Bloemfontein was in an odd mood last Sunday morning. On one side of town, rooftop parties were celebrating the Macufe soccer festival and the green and white colours of Bloemfontein Celtic were in evidence. Elsewhere, it was eerily quiet as the locals began to come to terms with the fact that the Cheetahs had qualified for a home final for the first time in 12 years.
The cricket team, which goes under the bizarre title of the Gestetner Diamond Eagles, were due to play a 45-over match starting at 9.45am. But, peeping out from behind wrap-around shades, Eagles coach Corrie van Zyl admitted rather sheepishly that his charges had downed a few ”cheekies” to celebrate the achievement of their rugby playing cousins.
And what an achievement it was. For Saturday’s final against the Bulls at Free State stadium marks the 30th anniversary of the Cheetahs’ first ever Currie Cup title. It also, of course, marks the first anniversary of their second title, achieved on that delirious day at Loftus Versfeld last year.
Coach Rassie Erasmus’s team has the chance to make history, since Free State have lost all four previous home finals. Showing faith in their team’s ability to banish such negativity, the Bloemfontein faithful snapped up every available ticket before the close of business on Monday. Perhaps the union should consider putting seats on the roof, alongside Erasmus and Helgaard Muller.
It promises to be a gala occasion and, good as their opponents in Saturday’s final are, it would be a brave person who predicted anything other than a home win.
Of course, much the same was said last year, when the same two teams met in the final at Loftus. With nine minutes remaining the Bulls led 25-15, but when the hooter sounded it was 29-25 to the Cheetahs and all hell broke loose.
The 2005 final looked set to be an unmemorable occasion. The Bulls had won the title three years in a row and froze out the Cheetahs for an hour and a quarter. The match had been a kicking duel between Morne Steyn and Willem de Waal, with Akona Ndungane scoring the only try.
The game’s key moment came when referee Jonathan Kaplan ordered Bryan Habana to the sin bin for an over-robust tackle. Exploiting the space available on the wing, the Cheetahs worked fullback Bevan Fortuin over in the corner. De Waal converted; Bulls 25 Cheetahs 22.
A few minutes later Cheetahs scrumhalf Falie Oelschig put up a high ball and watched in astonishment as two of the safest defenders in the country, Fourie du Preez and Johan Roets, allowed the ball to bounce. Twenty-year-old substitute Meyer Bosman snatched the ball away, scored under the posts and the match was won.
If there is any justice the Cheetahs will not need to wait so long to secure a win this year.
For one thing, the Bulls have lost the aura of invincibility they enjoyed under the coaching guidance of Heyneke Meyer. For another, the Cheetahs have proved this season that they are capable of playing sustained spells of sublime rugby.
Last weekend’s semifinal against the Sharks was a case in point. Billed as a potential upset, the Cheetahs simply destroyed the Sharks in the first half hour, during which they built a lead of 24-0. It was the single most impressive spell of rugby played by a South African team in any competition this season.
Frequently pundits choose the battle for the loose ball as the defining area of a game. In that first half hour, however, there was no battle because there was no loose ball. The Free State forwards were immense and the backs exploited the weak defence of the Sharks’ inside channel in ruthless fashion.
Any team that can play as well as the Cheetahs did in that period should never have to deal with the underdog tag at home. The Bulls will offer a stout challenge, but they will not win on Saturday.
Their chances would be improved if bureaucracy had not thrown a spanner in the works.
It is patent madness for the South African Rugby Union (Saru) to ban Victor Matfield from helping his union. We are told that his status as a contracted Springbok makes him ineligible either to play or to participate in training with the Bulls in the Currie Cup.
It’s been said before, but it’s worth saying again: a camel is a horse designed by a committee. Saru should be ashamed of itself for even allowing Matfield’s input to become the subject of debate.
Naturally the Bulls will abide by Saru’s decision and Matfield’s help will be behind closed doors instead of out in the open, but that’s not the point.
The point is that rugby has been professional for 11 years now and banning Matfield from helping the union to which he is contracted smacks of the bad old days when players were banned from rugby union grounds for having the temerity to write an autobiography.
Come on guys, get real: this is the Currie Cup final and, despite what you might hear or read in the media this week, it’s meant to be fun.