The performances of South African teams in the Super 14 are no reason to write off the Springboks.
It is traditionally about now that we start to worry about the Springboks. A bunch of misfiring South African Super 14 teams and a host of glittering antipodean stars make pessimists of us all. How can we possibly compete at international level if the best of our players and teams are humiliated on such a regular basis?
Yet in comparison to other seasons this one is a veritable lulu. For a start, the Springbok coach is not under threat and the president of the South African Rugby Union is a sane man who holds down a proper job.
For another thing, most of the players who featured in Jake White’s squads in 2004 and 2005 are available for selection. Bryan Habana remains the best finisher in world rugby and would be proving that on a weekly basis if only the Bulls’ game plan extended further than inside centre.
Schalk Burger is going through a quiet spell that could be alleviated if only Kobus van der Merwe, the coach of the Stormers, would stop playing him out of position. Victor Matfield and Jean de Villiers returned to action last week after extended injury breaks, and the latter assumes the captaincy of the Stormers this time around.
There are those who will tell you that De Villiers is a shoo-in as the next Springbok captain, although it might be politic to whisper such sedition around the current Springbok captain, John Smit, who returns to lead the Sharks against the Highlanders in Dunedin this week.
The Cats have decided to save Andre Pretorius for the home games on the horizon rather than send him to join his humiliated colleagues in New Zealand. That smacks of a rather early hoisting of the white flag by the Cats leadership, given that they still have nine games to play, but it may merely be an overdue touch of pragmatism.
Besides which, they do have another current Bok back in the starting line-up to face the Crusaders in Christchurch, namely Conrad Jantjes, the fullback who has not played since injuring himself in a pre-season warm-up match. Widely regarded as the natural successor to Percy Montgomery, Jantjes has an important season ahead of him.
Elsewhere, Jaque Fourie, Fourie du Preez, Ricky Januarie, Juan Smith, Bakkies Botha and CJ van der Linde look and play like quality Boks every time they go on to the field, while Os du Randt and Montgomery continue to hold Old Father Time at bay, with the latter sent home a week early for good behaviour and a well-deserved rest ahead of the Sharks’ home series.
There are even a few prodigious new talents poking their heads above the ramparts, principle among them being Ruan Pienaar of the Sharks.
So we really shouldn’t be so pessimistic, but what would the Super 14 be without a little doom and gloom?
Well, actually that’s part of the problem, for if the Super 14 were a brand-new concept instead of an extended version of the Super 10 and Super 12, we might be justified in asking what all the fuss is about. Five weeks into the tournament, the four-try bonus point has scarcely been invoked and we still await a game to make the pulses race.
The best in week four saw the Cheetahs fighting back from 25-10 down to beat the Hurricanes 27-25, while in week five it was the Sharks losing 35-30 to the Brumbies in Canberra. It’s remarkable to think that with a modicum of good fortune and a teaspoon more of self-belief the Sharks might be leading the log instead of dwelling among the also-rans.
Dick Muir’s men should have beaten the Cheetahs at home and both the Crusaders and Brumbies away. Instead, they had to be content with a bonus point for finishing within seven points on each occasion. Last week they led 21-6 after 35 minutes, and Henno Mentz had scored a try that was the result of the first properly executed backline move by a South African team this season.
With half-time beckoning and the Brumbies throwing everything into desperate attack, Deon Carstens raised the ire of referee Paul Honiss by stepping out of the defensive line and batting a ball to the ground.
A few years ago, the result may have been a penalty try for a deliberate infringement where a try would probably have been scored. Nowadays, referees prefer the yellow card option and upon that thought the Sharks fell apart. They conceded not one penalty try, but three genuine tries either side of half-time.
This is where self-belief is all-important. Successful sides weather storms, but it’s a long time since the Sharks were successful. The same might be said of every South African team in the Super 14, with the possible exception of the Bulls.
Fortunately, there is still a long way to go and bonus points seem to come way down the list of priorities, even with the leading teams this year. Accordingly, it is likely to be the most evenly matched tournament yet played and there is still time for the current down-and-outs to get off the canvas and make the semis.