The earliest start to a rugby season in South African history comes with a change of colour for two franchises and genuine hope of a Super 14 semifinal place for the other three.
The optimism is due in part to the decision by New Zealand to rest 22 All Blacks from the first half of the tournament and also the palpable trough that Australian rugby is going through right now. But it is also fair to say that South African rugby is undergoing something of a renaissance, no bad thing considering that this is a World Cup year.
Less than four months have passed since the Cheetahs and the Bulls fought each other to a standstill in last year’s Currie Cup final. Now that the furore has died down around the lack of a tie-breaker, we can look back and see it for what it was: a dynamic conclusion to the best domestic competition in a decade.
Under Eugene Eloff the Lions went unbeaten for the second half of the season, and while that wasn’t enough to force a way into the semifinals, they did enough to suggest that good times are just around the corner.
Those times will perforce be without Wikus van Heerden, who has signed with the Bulls. Given that Van Heerden had been captain for four seasons and invariably the Cats‚ and Lions‚ man of the match, life without him might seem impossibly arduous.
But as good a player as Moaner’s son was and is, his battering ram style does not suit the game the Cats are trying to play under Eloff. Van Heerden’s replacement as captain is the mercurial Andre Pretorius and given the latter’s injury record his appointment might seem an act of incurable optimism on the part of Eloff.
It may or may not be a stroke of genius. Time alone will tell. At least the rebranding of the franchise will give the illusion of a clean break with a depressing past, although the cynics might be intrigued by the change of jersey colour from white to red. After all, in the bad old days of colonialism the British army wore red tunics to disguise the presence of blood and to stop the ranks from panicking under fire.
The Lions are the only local franchise not playing South African opposition this weekend. While Eloff’s boys entertain the Waratahs, the Sharks host the Bulls and the Stormers travel to Bloemfontein to take on the Cheetahs.
Crucial though all these games are, it is the Sharks and Cheetahs who have the most to lose, for the draw allows them the comfort of two months in this country before travelling. It is a mantra no less true for being familiar that home games must be won if a team wishes to challenge for higher honours in Super Rugby.
The Sharks missed out on points difference on a semifinal spot last year after losing several games by less than the price of a penalty. The Cheetahs finished in mid-table, but their coach, Rassie Erasmus, said this week: ”[In a run of] 10 games last year, we won five of them. We could have lost all 10 of them or won them all.” Quite.
The Sharks, in particular, have everything to play for. They don’t fly overseas until Sunday, March 25 and once there they play just four games, against the Force and Reds in Australia and the Blues and Chiefs across the Tasman.
I spoke to their dynamic wing, Odwa Ndungane, this week and he said: ”We’ve spoken about the favourable draw as a team and that a good start could see us all the way through — but remember that last year we had a terrible draw and look where we ended up.”
Ndungane is also one of the legions of fans devoted to the methods of Sharks coach Dick Muir.
He said: ”Dick has a great way of making everyone in the squad feel special. He’ll take you aside and say a couple of things, like: ‘Saturday’s another big game. Enjoy it.’ He makes you want to play your best, because you can see what he’s trying to achieve and I just want to play out of my skin for him.”
Ndungane will have to wait a week for that privilege, having sustained an ankle injury in a pre-season match against the Cheetahs that will preclude him playing against his twin brother Akona when the Bulls visit the Shark Tank this weekend.
Also missing from Muir’s squad is Bob Skinstad, but the coach says the new signing will play a Vodacom Cup match for the Wildebeest next week.
So it’s a case of something old, something new, something borrowed and, in the case of the Stormers, something blue, when the season gets under way this weekend.
Like the Lions, the Stormers have decided to realign themselves with their Currie Cup identity, wearing the blue of Western Province and casting aside the Men in Black theme.
May their rugby be equally free of false bluster.