Ken Borland

Flyhalf Elton Jantjies worked his magic with the boot as he kicked the Lions to a hard-fought 27-25 (half-time 12-19) victory over the Cheetahs in their all-South African SuperRugby match at Ellis Park on Saturday.

Jantjies scored all 27 of the Lions’ points through nine penalties, a SuperRugby record, missing just two attempts at goal.

Jannie Kruger (Northern Transvaal 1996), Willie Walker (Otago, 2003), Meyer Bosman (Cheetahs, 2006) and Derick Hougaard (Bulls, 2007) had all previously kicked eight penalties in a match.

Opposite number Johan Goosen ensured the Lions had to work exceptionally hard for their victory, however, as he kicked even more impressively, landing all seven of his attempts at goal, including a 48m snap drop goal and a phenomenal 57m penalty.

The Lions effectively won the game when the 19-year-old Goosen was out of action, the Cheetahs flyhalf being yellow-carded between the 54th and 64th minutes for twice not rolling away in the tackle, before leaving the field with a head injury in the 68th minute.

Both scrumhalf Tewis de Bruyn and replacement flyhalf Sias Ebersohn missed relatively straightforward penalties while Goosen was off the field.

The Cheetahs ensured that they led from the ninth to the 71st minute as they scored the only try of the match, with prop WP Nel muscling his way over the tryline from close range in the ninth minute.

“If you concede two yellow cards and 16 penalties then you’re not going to win. We didn’t play badly, but bad discipline cost us. Johan Goosen kicked really well, but tactically, especially in the second half, we could have controlled the game better,” Cheetahs coach Naka Drotske said.

With both teams often floundering at the breakdowns, Goosen was presented with several penalties, but it was a credit to Jantjies’ composure that he also kept chipping away at the other end.

“The breakdown was always going to be scrappy, but it was a learning curve for us. It was definitely frustrating, maybe the guys aren’t used to the referee’s calls this early in the season, we struggled with the timing of getting our hands off the ball and leaving daylight. But Elton is an exceptional player, he’s proved it time and time again,” Lions captain Joshua Strauss said.

The match-winning penalty came with seven minutes remaining as Cheetahs replacement flank Ashley Johnson hit centre Doppies la Grange with a high tackle and Jantjies calmly slotted the kick from 40 metres out.

Scorers

Lions – Penalties: Elton Jantjies (9).

Cheetahs – Try: WP Nel. Conversion: Johan Goosen. Penalties: Goosen (5). Drop goal: Goosen.

The Bulls successfully used the boot of flyhalf Morne Steyn to subdue the Sharks and win their all-South African SuperRugby match 18-13 (half-time 0-0) at Loftus Versfeld on Friday.
The first half was marred by scrappy play, poor handling and little vision on attack and it ended scoreless.
But the Bulls dominated the first half-hour of the second half, with Steyn, the franchise’s leading points-scorer with 991, kicking penalties in the 43rd, 49th, 53rd, 56th and 58th minutes.
The Bulls physically dominated the breakdown, but their own errors prevented them from gaining much momentum and they showed little ambition on attack, preferring to use up-and-unders by Steyn and the brilliant chasing and aerial skills of wing Bjorn Basson.
Steyn also used the time and space given to him by the strong driving of his forwards to stroke over a 68th-minute drop goal that gave the Bulls a healthy 18-6 lead.
The Sharks managed just two penalties from flyhalf Pat Lambie in the first 70 minutes, but began to keep ball in hand far more effectively during the closing stages as they stretched the Bulls.
The visitors scored the only try of the match as wing Lwazi Mvovo made a strong run down the right, before replacement flank Jacques Botes provided the support to complete the try, which was converted by Lambie.
But the Bulls defence held for the last nine minutes as the 2007, 2009 and 2010 champions made a winning start to the competition.
“It was a combination of eagerness and dew on the ball, but every time we got in their half, we just seemed unable to keep the ball. It was frustrating, but in the second half we picked up our focus and got some points,” Bulls captain Pierre Spies told a news conference after the game.
“There was good defence on both sides and there were no easy yards and no gaps out there. There was a lot of play between the two 10-metre lines and a lot of it was about field position and tactical kicking. The collisions were big, but we controlled the ball well in contact, which was important for us to build pressure,” coach Frans Ludeke said.
Sharks coach John Plumtree conceded that his team did not deserve to win.
“I’m proud of the way we came back at the end, but you can’t win games if you make so many basic errors. Our lineout did not function and we couldn’t dominate the gain-line. They stressed us, their box-kicks were outstanding, and we gave away 14 penalties, so there’s a lot for us to do,” Plumtree said.

Possible relegation from SuperRugby next year will be the strongest driving force for South Africa’s five franchises in 2012, with the Lions and Cheetahs most in danger of extinction.

While the Stormers, Bulls and Sharks all have enough pedigree to make winning the tournament their priority, for the Lions and Cheetahs, who have just seven top-10 finishes between them in the 16 years of the Sanzar competition, it will be a desperate battle for survival.

The Eastern Cape-based Southern Kings have won promotion into SuperRugby next year in the South African Rugby Union (Saru) boardroom, meaning one of the current five franchises will have to make way for them.

The “big five” have called on Saru to prevent any of them being dropped by convincing Sanzar to make it a 16-team competition, but they are unlikely to win that battle with contracts signed with broadcasters and franchises through to the end of 2015.

The Johannesburg-based Lions managed a fairytale Currie Cup triumph last year, but are currently in the midst of a financial crisis and a lack of top-class players could count against them in the more competitive and demanding southern hemisphere tournament.

The 21-year-old Elton Jantjies emerged as a slick flyhalf who served a fluent backline well in last year’s Currie Cup, but he and veterans Butch James (flyhalf) and CJ van der Linde (prop) are the only current Springboks in the Lions squad.

Lions coach John Mitchell is in a typically defiant mood, however.

“Our only concern is ourselves and our environment, not what other people are saying. We’re just interested in our goals as a team, we’re familiar with each other and that’s something I believe we can bank on,” the former All Blacks coach said on Wednesday.

The central Cheetahs franchise have a few more Springboks in their ranks, but will go into the competition without the inspirational leadership of flank Juan Smith, who is still battling an achilles injury that also kept him out of last year’s World Cup.

But in Heinrich Brussow, the Cheetahs have one of the most effective fetchers in world rugby, and coach Naka Drotske said the flank would be his team’s new inspiration.

“Heinrich [Brüssow] does make a huge difference to our team and I am really looking forward to seeing him in action on the field. With his style of play, he encourages the other players to be aggressive and he will make a difference to any team,” Drotske said.

The Cheetahs play the Lions in Johannesburg on Saturday and, having lost their first four matches last year, Drotske said it was imperative they started well in 2012.

“In the past that was a major drawback for us. We lose a few games early in the season, which we should win, and last year there were several defeats. There is no doubt we want to get off to a better start.”

The Western Cape-based Stormers, winners of the South African Conference last year before being knocked out by the Crusaders in the semi-finals, will have to make do without the brilliance of Jaque Fourie at outside centre and the backroom input of former director of rugby Rassie Erasmus, but the backline is still potent. But it was the defence – the best in the competition last year – that was the Stormers’ greatest strength last year, while the lack of grunt in the tight five was the biggest weakness.

The Bulls, champions in 2007, 2009 and 2010, have undergone a changing of the guard with stars such as Fourie du Preez, Victor Matfield, Bakkies Botha and Danie Rossouw no longer involved. But that has created room for potential futures heroes such as Francois Hougaard, Juandre Kruger, Flip van der Merwe and Dewald Potgieter to take centre stage. The presence of two young centres in former Stormer Johann Sadie and former SA U20 star Francois Venter suggests they may play with more daring this year.

But the Bulls also know how to play winning rugby and they have more than half-a-dozen members of their title-winning sides back this year, including flyhalf Morne Steyn and eighthman and new captain Pierre Spies.

“It’s a credit to our succession planning that we’re not starting all over,” coach Frans Ludeke said. “We have people to step into the vital spots and I’m confident the players will step up, they know it’s their time.”

Commentators are also favouring the Sharks to make an impact, with inconsistency, especially at home, to blame for their failure to make the semi-finals since 2008. The presence of 16 Springboks in their squad suggests they have flattered to deceive, but the hunger to succeed in the likes of hooker Bismarck du Plessis, finally playing out of the shadow of John Smit, outside back JP Pietersen, loose forward Willem Alberts and the young utility back Pat Lambie suggests they will be a force this year.

The Sharks also have the services of the experienced exiled French halfback Freddie Michalak, but the front row has been weakened due to the absence of Tendai “Beast” Mtawarira with a broken leg.