Ken Borland

The defending champion Lions will be hoping it will be a case of history repeating itself in Johannesburg next weekend as they once again host Western Province in a Currie Cup semi-final.

Western Province produced a commanding display to dispatch the Free State Cheetahs 36-15 at Newlands on Saturday, giving them third place on the log and a semi-final against the second-placed Lions.

While the Capetonians will bring a squad full of top-class players now that the Springboks have returned to Currie Cup action, Lions fans will remember well that the same thing happened last year, with the Gautengers beating a star-studded Western Province team 29-20 at Ellis Park en route to hammering the Sharks in the final.

The Sharks are once again in contention, having finished at the top of the round-robin standings and they will host the Bulls in the other semi-final in Durban.

The Bulls, who began the final weekend at the bottom of the log and in serious danger of having to play promotion/relegation against the EP Kings, made the top four as Morne Steyn supervised a classy 50-29 victory over the Lions at Ellis Park.

Once the weight of avoiding the relegation playoffs was off their shoulders, the Bulls played with impressive freedom and they certainly have the ammunition now to avenge their 13-12 loss to the Sharks in a sodden Durban two weeks ago.

“We’ve had to fight our way out of a hole, and the last three games we’ve played really well, even when we lost to the Sharks. Conditions were very difficult that day, but we know the Sharks are a tough challenge; they’ve lost just once in Durban the whole year, but we’re just happy we’ve given ourselves the opportunity. A semi-final is a funny sort of game, it depends on who is more accurate on the day,” Bulls coach Pine Pienaar said.

The Lions, meanwhile, were not overly concerned by the big loss, having rested several key players and having the home semi-final already in the bag before the match against the Bulls even started.

“We started to go through the motions a bit, we lacked a bit of experience in the side this weekend and some of the guys started thinking about next week.

“Last year, we played against the Sharks the week before the semi-finals and lost 53-9, so we definitely didn’t have any momentum going into the knockout rounds, but we played our best rugby of the year after that. I felt that when we wanted to play tonight, we could do it and we’re definitely ready for the semi-finals,” Lions stand-in captain Butch James said.

With both Lions’ outside centres – Lionel Mapoe and Deon van Rensburg – suffering injuries at the weekend, Alwyn Hollenbach could well have to slide across into the number 13 jersey, opening up a place inside him for James, with Elton Jantjies coming back at flyhalf. That will set up a fascinating contest next weekend between James and another senior pro in Jean de Villiers in Western Province’s number 12 jersey.

De Villiers was one of the players to shine as the Capetonians, who began the match with an outside chance of being sucked into the relegation battle, produced a clinical display that left the Cheetahs with barely a gram of hope.

Western Province were allowed to run by the lethargic Cheetahs, a wonderful platform being laid by the forwards, led by returning Springbok lock Eben Etzebeth, and the Free Staters were out of the contest by the end of the first quarter.

In the veterinary world, the Cheetahs may have been put down, so lacklustre were they. Naka Drotske’s men could probably do with some defence clinics before their promotion/relegation meeting with the Kings.

The Sharks were another team to hit their straps at the weekend, giving Griquas the run-around in an overwhelming 42-3 victory in Durban. And coach John Plumtree still has some Springbok talent lying around that he can add to the side in the form of Tendai Mtawarira, Willem Alberts and Lwazi Mvovo.

The big question this year is once again whether it is better to have a settled side with continuity – i.e. the Lions – or will the introduction of the Springboks provide the necessary boost for the Bulls or Western Province to overcome the disadvantage of playing away from home?

The Sharks, having learnt the harsh lessons of last year when their seven Springboks returning from the World Cup failed to gel with the rest of the team and they were thumped 42-16 by the Lions in the final, are perhaps in the pound seats because they have experience of these problems and they will be playing both the semi-finals and the final, if they qualify, at King’s Park.

http://dailymaverick.co.za/article/2012-10-16-in-like-lions-but-will-they-go-out-like-lambs

The sleek new six-team Currie Cup Premier Division has certainly ensured a more competitive format and, heading into this weekend’s final round-robin fixtures, all the teams remain in contention for the semi-finals, while the bottom four can all qualify for the knockout stages or finish last and be forced into a promotion/relegation battle.

Both the Sharks (30pts) and Lions (28pts) can sally forth into the last round of games secure in the knowledge that they have already clinched home semi-finals because the gap between them and the chasing pack is too large to be bridged.

Western Province and Griquas are tied on 20 points, while Free State and the Blue Bulls languish on 18.

Whoever finishes last on the Premier Division log will have to play promotion/relegation against the Watson father-and-son combination of the EP Kings after the ambitious Port Elizabeth team topped the First Division standings with an unbeaten 14-game run.

The Free State Cheetahs, after a poor season in which they have won just three of their nine games thus far, are probably most under pressure as they travel to Newlands to take on a Western Province outfit restored to full strength by their Springboks.

And Western Province will not be lacking any motivation as they are after a semi-final place and will be desperate to avoid the ignominy of a relegation battle, which will happen if they lose on Saturday and the Bulls beat the Lions in Johannesburg and Griquas upset the Sharks.

Lady Luck may have turned her face away from the Lions for much of this year, but the troubled defending champions have once again done extremely well in the Currie Cup and, because they have already sown up a home semi-final, can afford to rest some key players on Saturday, perhaps increasing the hopes of the Bulls.

For the Bulls, the permutations are simple. Win, and a semi-final place is their’s, lose and they will have to stave off relegation. (There is a third, more arcane possibility and that is if the Bulls lose but collect two bonus points then they can still finish fourth or fifth depending on how Griquas and Free State do).

The Bulls, with their strict adherence to game plan, and the Cheetahs, with a laissez-faire willingness to attack from anywhere, are on different ends of the playing spectrum but they have both landed themselves in trouble this season.

The Bulls can at least call upon a host of Springboks – Zane Kirchner, Morne Steyn, Jacques Potgieter, Flip van der Merwe, Juandre Kruger, Francois Hougaard, Bjorn Basson, Chiliboy Ralepelle and Dean Greyling – to try and turn their fortunes around at the death.

Western Province supporters, fed a steady diet of under-performance by a side that has gone trophy-less since 2001, are also putting their hopes in returning Springboks, with coach Allister Coetzee naming Bryan Habana, Jean de Villiers, Juan de Jongh, Duane Vermeulen, Andries Bekker, Eben Etzebeth and Tiaan Liebenberg in the starting line-up.

Coetzee has recently relaxed the defence-minded regimen he instituted with the Stormers, but against a team that likes an expansive game like the Cheetahs do, the argument that Western Province should perhaps play it tight and squeeze the visitors carries some weight.

Sharks coach John Plumtree, still haunted by last season’s events when he chose all his returning Springboks for the Currie Cup final and saw a more cohesive Lions team saunter to a 42-16 triumph, has meanwhile decided to phase his returning internationals back into action this time and only Pat Lambie makes it into the starting XV. Prop Jannie du Plessis, hooker Craig Burden and flank Marcell Coetzee are on the bench.

Tendai Mtawarira, Willem Alberts and Lwazi Mvovo have the weekend off and will add tremendously to the depth in the squad when they return to contention for the semi-finals.

Griquas, meanwhile, have surprised each and everyone with their bold rugby and coach Pote Human has reaped the rewards of consistency in selection. He hasn’t got the depth to play around with like the bigger unions, however, so perhaps he had little other option, but Griquas have certainly impressed after most critics had them down for the relegation battle at the end of the season.

The Sharks have had a torrid time against the Griquas in Kimberley of late, but if the Northern Cape team can beat the log-leaders in Durban, it will be an enormous upset.

Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer will no doubt also be an engrossed observer as Lambie starts at flyhalf for the first time since the early stages of SuperRugby.

It all adds up to an intriguing final weekend of action, the margins between failure and success being ridiculously small.

Weekend fixtures

Friday – Sharks v Griquas (Durban, 7.10pm)

Saturday – Western Province v Free State Cheetahs (Cape Town, 5.05pm)

Lions v Blue Bulls (Johannesburg, 7.10pm)

Log

Even Heyneke Meyer is surely no longer in denial and key changes in personnel can be expected in the Springbok squad when it is announced on Saturday night after the seventh round of Currie Cup action.

Chief among these should be at flyhalf. While Meyer has quite rightly pointed to consistency of selection as the basis for success, his faith in Morne Steyn has not paid off. If anything, the hero of 2009 and 2010 is trapped in a downward spiral, his confidence draining away with every outing.

It is surely time for Steyn to take a break from Test rugby and regain his form and confidence in the Currie Cup. The Bulls, in dire straits in that competition, will surely welcome him back into their team with open arms.

The replacement for Steyn in the squad should be Lions pivot Elton Jantjies, the most in-form flyhalf in the country. The longer Meyer ignores the 22-year-old, who steered the Lions against the odds to the Currie Cup title last year, the more fuel he is throwing on the fire of those (like predecessor Peter de Villiers) who are targeting him on transformation grounds.

The starting flyhalf against Australia at Loftus Versfeld next Saturday will inevitably be young and inexperienced, with either Jantjies or Johan Goosen getting the nod, but Meyer has little choice but to grasp the nettle now.

Meyer has waxed lyrical about how he sees the makings of a great flyhalf in Goosen and the 20-year-old has done nothing to suggest otherwise in the half-an-hour of Test rugby he has played thus far. Against a struggling Australian team, at fortress Loftus with a crowd that will be behind him, there won’t be many easier times in which to hand over the baton.

Jantjies also looks like a man for the future of Springbok rugby. He has it all: the ability to spark a backline and a good passing game; a powerful, well-educated and accurate boot; and he is brave and secure in defence.

Pat Lambie is another impressive youngster who has many supporters, but it is perhaps being overly romantic to suggest he should be the Springboks’ starting flyhalf.

At Test level, a flyhalf has to be able to control the game, usually with the boot. While Lambie’s attacking talents are not in doubt, his game management skills still need developing and even the Sharks preferred Freddie Michalak to him at number 10.

But there has been a suggestion that Lambie, who was injured for much of the SuperRugby campaign and has barely featured off the Springbok bench, has been rested from this weekend’s Currie Cup action because Meyer is lining him up to start at fullback.

Zane Kirchner has done little wrong and has been solid and dependable at the back, but Lambie can definitely add more flair and penetration with ball in hand. And he can even stand at flyhalf when the Springboks are on attack.

Kirchner ran just eight metres with the ball in Dunedin and kicked just once, so one can hardly say he is making a big impact at the moment.

Where the Springboks did make a big impact was up front with Adriaan Strauss (15m gained, 4 tackles), Flip van der Merwe (5m, 13 tackles), Francois Louw (11m, 6 tackles) and Willem Alberts (10m, 6 tackles) all boasting impressive statistics.

It is unlikely that Meyer will make any unforced changes to his forwards, having already declared himself happy with their efforts and excited by their potential.

One change is definite, however, with prop Dean Greyling suspended for idiotically hitting Richie McCaw in the face with his forearm. Coenie Oosthuizen will make his return from a neck injury off the bench for the Cheetahs and it will be interesting to see how much game time he gets. Whether it will be enough to convince Meyer that the versatile front-ranker is ready for international rugby remains to be seen.

While Louw’s work-rate was good against the All Blacks, it did rather prove Meyer’s point about fetchers when the Springboks were penalised a dozen times at the ruck and maul. But a stellar display by Heinrich Brussow for the Cheetahs could see him return to favour.

The forwards have done their job in the last two Tests, winning the bulk of possession. But it is now imperative that Meyer chooses a backline to capitalise on that ball, in particular a flyhalf who uses possession a lot more wisely than Steyn has lately.

http://dailymaverick.co.za/article/2012-09-22-hey-heyneke-meyer-check-your-blind-spot