THE 2002 Super 12 rugby season will best be remembered for two chief reasons; the first being the incredible run of 11 successive wins by the all-conquering Crusaders and, secondly, for the absolutely shocking display by the South African sides.
The Stormers finished top of a distinctly mediocre South African pile, but at least Gert Smal’s men can enjoy the status of completing the local ‘slam’.
The Super 12 is not over, with the Crusaders set to meet Laurie Mains’ Highlanders in the semi-final in Christchurch, while the Waratahs will hope to erase Saturday’s horrific loss to the Canterbury team when they meet the erratic Brumbies in Sydney.
But at least for the South African teams the competition is mercifully over and efforts can now be made to regroup and prepare for next season.
There were rumblings earlier in the year that South Africa should be able to field five teams and the Wallabies four, extending an already bursting tournament to a Super 14, but on the evidence of this season those rumblings have faded faster than Doug Howlett speeding down the wing.
The Bulls almost mirrored the Crusaders in completing a clean sweep, but their dubious distinction of 11 straight losses will go down in the annals of Super 12 folklore as an embarrassing reminder of a bygone era on how to run a once-mighty franchise.
The Crusaders, already three time titlists, put on such a commanding performance throughout the season that they fully deserve their status as Super 12 supremos.
Their record of 11 straight wins will take some beating.
But that record will count for nothing if they come unstuck against Mains’ perennial underachieving Highlanders outfit.
The Crusaders proved their ruthless desire to win when they annihilated the second place Waratahs 96-19 on Saturday despite already having earned a home semi-final.
But stories of Super 12 heroics belong to the Antipodes. South Africa must take a hard look at themselves and question why they fail year after year.
To be totally honest, nobody expected the Bulls to really challenge any team but the Sharks and the Stormers were tipped as potential semi-finalists.
The Stormers did lose two matches early in the campaign by one point and that had a huge impact on the psychology for the rest of the season.
The Sharks, despite boasting a strong squad, were dismal while the Cats were pathetic.
Cats coach Frans Ludeke, in his first season with a franchise that has won through to the play-offs in both 2000 and 2001, admitted recently that there were no easy games.
The Cats finished marginally better than the Bulls, defeating their northern neighbours in the first round of the competition but from there they nose-dived quicker than a kamikaze pilot.
The less said about the Bulls the better. – Sapa