The Canterbury Crusaders are probably favourites for a fourth consecutive title, but all South African eyes will be on the local contenders as the Super 12 kicks off
Andy Capostagno
The sixth season of Super 12 may be the last, with pressure from above to expand the format and take up even more space in the groaning fixture lists. It began (without South Africa) as the Super 6, became the Super 10 in 1993 and after back-to-back victories from the Queensland Reds, the Super 12 was born in 1996. Since then only two New Zealand teams have known what it is like to lift the trophy. The Auckland Blues were victorious in 1996 and 1997 thanks to the last hurrahs of an outstanding generation that included Zinzan Brooke, Michael Jones and Sean Fitzpatrick. From 1998 to last year the trophy has been displayed alongside the lopsided grin of Canterbury Crusaders captain Todd Blackadder. Their first win was regarded as a shock, their second as a fluke and their third as the ill-mannered gate-crashing of a party held in honour of the ACT Brumbies. The last Saturday in May dawned cold and wet and the Brumbies lost the plot. The sound of Andre Watson’s full time whistle had not died away before Australian commentator Simon Poidevin was sticking the knife into the South African official for having the temerity to allow the home team to lose. Poidevin was clutching at straws, for he could not find it within himself to praise the play of the Crusaders. And that has been pretty much the lot of the three-peat champions until now. So let’s not make the same mistake , give the Crusaders their due and install them as favourites to make it four in a row.
Having said all of that, the Kiwis have the toughest task of any team in the opening round of matches this weekend, having to go back to Canberra and do it all over again, this time without the injured Andrew Mehrtens. On top of that they are perennially slow starters, losing three of their first four matches in 1998, and even with Stephen Larkham’s doubtful participation for the Brumbies the home side should gain a modicum of revenge for last year’s defeat.
It might seem a lifetime ago now, but in 1997 the Bulls (or Northern Transvaal as they then were) made the semifinals of the Super 12. They won eight of their 11 matches before losing the semifinal in Auckland. Since then the franchise has won a mere four matches out of 33 played, three of which were in 1998, the year that they beat the Brumbies 24-7 in Brakpan, of all places. It is no wonder that new coach Phil Pretorius has not been beating the drum about his side’s chances. For distressing medical reasons Pretorius will have to do without Ruben Kruger and Krynauw Otto, but he does have an ace up his sleeve in Joost van der Westhuizen and he has made a wise choice in appointing the Springbok icon as captain. For while the same myopic critics who claim that Bobby Skinstad is back to his elastic best claim that Van der Westhuizen is finished, you only need look at his steadily improving play on last year’s end of season tour to know that the finest scrumhalf this country has produced will not disgrace himself in the Super 12. Pretorius has chosen to partner Van der Westhuizen with Boeta Wessels at halfback for Friday night’s trip to Durban, but it is likely that Franco Smith will move in from inside centre at some stage of the second half, possibly allowing Wessels to drop back to fullback, a position where he has shown much promise in the past. Sharks coach Rudolf Straeuli, having flirted with the idea of giving a Super 12 debut to Herkie Kruger, has seen sense and picked Butch James at flyhalf for the match. James took some criticism for his tactical kicking in last year’s Currie Cup final, but he is young and gifted and deserves a chance to stake his claim. The fact of the matter is that Pretorius, Straeuli and both teams are starting from scratch. In the tradition of matches between South African teams the match is likely to be high on testosterone and low on subtlety, and a nervous draw is a distinct possibility. We can expect something a little more cerebral in Cape Town where the Stormers take on the Cats on Saturday. For Stormers coach Alan Solomons it is the last-chance saloon as he is no longer involved in coaching the national side and takes up a post with Munster in Ireland in September. Solomons has come close before, losing to the Highlanders at the semifinal stage two years ago, thanks largely to an ill-conceived player strike, and missing out on the last four by just one point last season. He has a backline that can compete with the best, but he can only really hope for the best from his forwards. Cobus Visagie’s two-year ban, if not overturned on appeal, removes the cornerstone of the tight five, a factor that prompted a transfer of allegiance from the Cats of Lawrence Sephaka. The great imponderable, however, is the inclusion of Skinstad at eighth man. It goes without saying that if Skinstad is genuinely fit and, more importantly, able to trust his knees in sideways movement the Stormers will have a clear back row advantage over more than 50% of their opponents in the tournament.
If, however, his run of injuries have robbed him of the facets that made him unique it could be a sad couple of months for the likeable youngster. He could have no greater trial than to take on the Cats back row of Andre Vos, Andre Venter and Rassie Erasmus. That trio, together with a stronger tight five, gives the Cats a discernible edge, even without resorting to the statistics that tell us that the Stormers have never beaten their northern rivals.
But this is the first important match of the season, the Stormers will attract their normal fanatical support and if they can get enough ball to Breyton Paulse they will begin the campaign with a win.
@ Best of sport on TV
friday
Athletics: Indoor Grand Prix, from Ghent, at 8.30pm on SuperSport International (SSInt) Golf: Singapore Masters at 9.30am on SuperSport2 (SS2); Nissan Open at 11pm on SS1/CSN
Rugby: Super 12, Highlanders vs Blues at 8.20am on M-Net/SS1, Brumbies vs Crusaders at 10.30am on SS1/CSN, Sharks vs Bulls at 7pm on SS1/M-Net; Vodacom Cup, Natal vs Griffons at 5pm on SS1/CSN
Soccer: English Nationwide first division, Bolton Wanderers vs Blackburn Rovers at 9.40pm on SS2
saturday
Golf: Singapore Masters at 9am on SS2; Nissan Open at 10pm on SS1/CSN
Rugby: Super 12, Waratahs vs Chiefs at 10am on SS1/CSN (M-Net joins at 11am), Reds vs Hurricanes at noon on M-Net/SS1, Stormers vs Cats at 5pm on M-Net/SS1; Vodacom Cup, Lions vs Elephants at 3pm on SABC3
Soccer: Premier Soccer League (PSL), Hellenic vs Supersport United at 3.30pm on SABC1; English Premier League, Tottenham Hotspur vs Leeds at 5pm on SS2 (repeat at 7pm on SSInt/CSN), Coventry vs Charlton at 5pm on SSInt (repeat at 7pm on SS1) sunday
Athletics: International indoor Grand Prix, from Lievin, France, at 4pm on SSInt
Boxing: Roy Jones Jnr vs Derrick Harmon, plus undercard including Derrick Gainer vs Victor Polo, Antonio Tarver vs Lincoln Carter, Glen Kelly vs Billy Lewis, from Florida at 4am on CSN/SSInt
Golf: Singapore Masters at 9am on SS1; Sunshine Tour Championship, from Leopard Creek at 2pm on SS1; Nissan Open at 10pm on SS1/CSN
Soccer: World Cup qualifier, Malawi vs South Africa at 2.30pm on SABC2; English premier league, Manchester United vs Arsenal at 3pm on M-Net/SSInt; English League (Worthington) Cup final, Liverpool vs Birmingham City at 5pm on SSInt (from 6pm on CSN); African Soccer Show, magazine programme, at 2pm on e.tv
monday
Soccer: MTN/Kick-off magazine programme at 6.05pm on e.tv; English premier league, Derby vs Aston Villa (played at the weekend) at 10pm on CSN/SSInt
tuesday
Cricket: First Test, first day, India vs Australia at 6am on SS2
Soccer: Best of English at 10pm on SABC1
Tennis: Dubai Championships at 5pm on SS2
wednesday
Cricket: First Test, second day, India vs Australia at 6am on SS2
Soccer: International friendly, England vs Spain from Villa Park at 9.45pm on SSInt; PSL, Kaizer Chiefs vs Santos at 10pm (delayed) on SABC2; European soccer highlights at 8.45pm on SSInt
Tennis: Dubai Championships at 5pm on SS2
thursday
Cricket: First Test, third day, India vs Australia at 6am on SS2
Golf: Dubai Classic at 12.30pm on SSInt; Genuity Championships at 11pm on SS1/CSN
Tennis: Dubai Championships at 5pm on SS2
friday
Cricket: First Test, fourth day, India vs Australia at 6am on SS2
Golf: Dubai Classic at 12.30pm on SSInt; Genuity Championships at 11pm on SS1/CSN
Rugby: Super 12, Blues vs Crusaders at 8.20am on M-Net/SS1; Vodacom Cup, Falcons vs Lions at 7pm on SS1/CSN
Soccer: English Nationwide first division, Birmingham City vs Watford at 9.40pm on SSInt
Tennis: Dubai Championships at 5pm on SS2
ENDS