ANDY CAPOSTAGNO, Johannesburg | Monday 4.00pm
SOUTH African rugby got the best possible Easter present when it discovered that at least one of its regional Super 12 teams can still play thrilling and innovative rugby. Given what had gone before, the Cats 54-31 win over the Chiefs was not so much surprising as astonishing.
Three weeks ago the Cats lost 64-0 to the Brumbies in Canberra and the saddest aspect of it was that no-one seemed terribly surprised. They had lost to a team who are virtually unbeatable at home, a team who many believe to be the champions elect in this year’s competition.
At Ellis Park on Saturday Laurie Mains’ men had two things going for them (three, if you count the fact that Andrew Mehrtens has never won at the venue); a return to the game after a week off, and home advantage. But they were playing the defending champions and the Crusaders had the stated aim of winning both their matches in South Africa.
And those who recall watching Cats teams down the years throw away significant leads would have felt a sense of deja vu when the visitors took advantage of the sin-binning of Hennie le Roux to post two tries and come back to 31-34. But the script was torn up at that point and two late Thinus Delport tries underlined the significance of the occasion.
Mains will know, more than anyone, that his team still needs a lot of favours from those above to sniff a semi-final spot, but at the end of the day it was the manner of victory rather than its effect on the log which was significant.
While the Stormers had a week off the Sharks and the Bulls showed exactly why local supporters should be lauding the play of the Cats. In Auckland the Bulls were once again overwhelmed, this time 54-11 by the Blues and they face the possibility of losing Springbok lock Krynauw Otto to a citing over reckless rucking.
The Blues victory propelled them into fourth place ahead of the Hurricanes on points difference. After a desperately slow start the champions of 1996 and 1997 may be peaking at precisely the right time.
Meanwhile in Durban the Sharks spent half the game camped on the Reds line and came away with nothing to show for it. Queensland teams have always known how to grind out wins when they are absolutely necessary and their wonderful captain, John Eales, looked as though he had spent 90 minutes in a meat grinder when he left the field.
Asked how the Reds might approach next week’s encounter with the Cats in Bloemfontein – a match that will end semi-final hopes for the losers – coach John Connolly said, “It would help if we were allowed 10 forwards instead of the usual eight”. It was the kind of backhanded compliment that the South African game has needed ever since this Super 12 campaign began.