Ken Borland

The Lions were relegated from SuperRugby on Thursday by the South African Rugby Union (Saru) General Council following the Johannesburg-based team’s last-placed finish in this year’s competition.

A statement released by Saru on Thursday said “the top four teams in the South African Conference in 2012 (Stormers, Bulls, Sharks and Cheetahs) will join the Southern Kings in the 2013 tournament. The teams were confirmed after the general meeting accepted a proposal first tabled by the executive council in January. The proposal was that the franchise occupying the lowest log position of the five franchises at the end of 2012 would be relegated.”

Saru also confirmed, however, that the Kings, based in the Eastern Cape, would only be guaranteed one year in the competition that also includes New Zealand and Australian franchises, with the Lions playing a two-legged promotion/relegation match against the team that finishes last in the South African Conference in 2013.

None of the teams that will comprise the Southern Kings franchise – Eastern Province, South-Western Districts and Border – play in the domestic Currie Cup Premier Division, and neither have they managed to win the same tournament’s B Division in recent years.

But Saru president Oregan Hoskins defended the general council’s decision, saying that the sheer quantities of players produced in the Eastern Cape region meant they deserved to play at an elite level.

“All rugby provinces have been consistently in support of the need for an Eastern Cape team in the Super Rugby competition,” Hoskins said in the statement. “That decision was first taken in 2005 but their inclusion has twice been postponed.
“We made a commitment to the Kings to include them in 2013 and rugby has delivered on that commitment. The franchise represents more clubs than any other region – apart from the Stormers – and contains numerous leading rugby schools. It has been starved of top-class rugby competition for a decade-and-a-half and now it has the chance to show what it can do.”

Saru CEO Jurie Roux claimed that the bulk of South Africa’s SuperRugby players also supported the move.

“The provinces asked for a rugby solution and we believe that this was the fairest and most transparent method to respond to what is undoubtedly a less-than-ideal situation,” Roux said. “We also canvassed SuperRugby players before the start of the season, through the Players’ Association, and this was their preferred mechanism.

“The decision to apply a promotion and relegation system from 2013 is standard practice in sport. We operate promotion and relegation in all our Currie Cup competitions, with the bottom-placed team being relegated unless it wins a play-off. Our strategic goal is to have six strong franchises covering the whole of South Africa and this decision keeps all of them in play on an annual basis,” said Roux.

The Lions, who are already in financial difficulty after falling out with their equity partners last year, now face an uncertain future but have said the majority of their squad are on long-term contracts.

The general council, made up of South Africa’s 14 provinces spread between the two Currie Cup divisions, rejected a suggestion that the Kings delay their introduction into SuperRugby until 2016, when a new broadcast contract is in place, in return for a financial boost and the guarantee of more than one year’s participation.

The Saru statement made no mention of any financial support being given to the Lions, who are a 123-year-old union based in South Africa’s largest city but now face massive financial losses due to their exclusion from SuperRugby.

Lions president Kevin de Klerk said the Kings had been gifted SuperRugby participation without earning their place.

“We are extremely disappointed at this result. This is a very unfortunate decision which will result in a team taking part in a competition without needing to qualify on rugby merits,” De Klerk said.

The Lions won just three of their 16 SuperRugby matches this year, and have won just 12 of their last 71 games in the competition.

The Bulls raised their intensity in the second half to beat struggling neighbours the Lions 37-20 and qualify for the playoffs in their SuperRugby match at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday.

The three-time champion Bulls struggled to shake off the bottom-of-the-log Lions in the first half, which ended with the scores level 20-20, but lifted their game to score two tries in the first 10 minutes of the second half to set up victory and clinch fifth place in the final standings.

The Bulls thus became the third South African team to qualify for the playoffs, joining the first-placed Stormers and the Sharks, who were edged into sixth position by the result in the country’s capital.

“We had some great moments in the first half, but they really came at us in the scrums and we had some unforced errors which broke our rhythm,” Bulls coach Frans Ludeke told a news conference after the game.

“But we were much more clinical in the second half, we didn’t allow the Lions to get into the game.”

The Lions, with relegation from SuperRugby hanging over their heads, came out roaring for their possible last appearance, dominating the Bulls in the scrums and breaking through tackles.

But they were once again frustrated by the errors that have characterised their campaign, Bulls wing Akona Ndungane taking advantage of flatfooted passing down the backline to intercept and score the opening try in the 16th minute.

Lions flyhalf Elton Jantjies kicked two penalties to keep the visitors in touch at 6-10 down until the half-hour, when their defence failed, two men going for Bulls scrumhalf Francois Hougaard as he darted from the base of a five-metre scrum, allowing wing Bjorn Basson to burst through a huge gap and score.

The Lions were trailing 6-17, but they bounced back superbly as tenacious scrumhalf Michael Bondesio ran straight through Bulls flyhalf Morne Steyn to score from a five-metre scrum and, although the visitors then presented Steyn with an easy penalty after a ruck infringement, an excellent dash down the left touchline by wing Anthony Volmink gave the Lions a lineout feed five metres from the tryline.

The Lions had struggled to secure their own lineout ball throughout the first half, but this time lock Hendrik Roodt took the ball at the front and eighthman and captain Josh Strauss was at the front of the drive over the line.

Jantjies converted the try from the touchline to draw the Lions level and leave the Bulls needing a much-improved second half to keep their campaign alive.

The Lions had an early reprieve in the second half when a Steyn penalty hit the upright, but the Bulls forwards stepped up their intensity and simply overwhelmed the Lions, who were unable to get out of their own territory for most of the second half.

Four minutes after the break, outside centre JJ Engelbrecht went on a superb, mazy run, while hooker Chiliboy Ralepelle punched the ball up well in midfield to set up a ruck, from which Hougaard broke and ran in a try from 25 metres out.

Four minutes later, the Lions were powerless to stop a succession of forward drives by the Bulls, with flank Jacques Potgieter having an easy run-in for the try.

“We need to address the first 10 minutes after half-time, last week it almost cost us the game, this week it did. It’s about concentration in defence. But up till then I was happy, especially with the forwards, the front row went very well,” Lions stand-in coach Johan Ackermann said.

Fullback Zane Kirchner, under pressure from front-rankers Martin Bezuidenhout and JC Janse van Rensburg, made a mess of dotting down for a fifth try in the 60th minute, but the Springbok then won an up-and-under to set up another penalty for Steyn that completed the scoring.

Loosehead prop Dean Greyling, who had been at the forefront of the Bulls’ driving play, was yellow-carded in the 79th minute for dangerous play, but it made no difference to the home side, who had already secured a trip to Christchurch to take on the Canterbury Crusaders, who finished fourth, in their playoff match.

Scorers

Bulls – Tries: Akona Ndungane, Bjorn Basson, Francois Hougaard, Jacques Potgieter. Conversions: Morne Steyn (4). Penalties: Steyn (3).

Lions – Tries: Michael Bondesio, Josh Strauss. Conversions: Elton Jantjies (2). Penalties: Jantjies (2).

The Lions claimed just their third victory of the season as flyhalf Elton Jantjies succeeded with all seven of his kicks at goal to give them a 37-32 victory over the Melbourne Rebels in their SuperRugby match at Ellis Park on Saturday.

The Lions had to overcome a fantastic comeback by the Rebels, who scored three second-half tries to turn a 7-24 half-time deficit into a 32-27 lead.

But replacement flank Jaco Kriel then charged down the blindside to score an equalising try, which Jantjies converted from the touchline to give the Lions the lead, the young flyhalf then kicking a penalty on the final hooter to stretch the winning margin to five points.

The Lions, who have an interim coaching staff due to the suspension of former All Black mentor John Mitchell, played with enormous confidence and freedom in the first half as they ran in three tries and Jantjies kicked a penalty to give them a 24-0 lead after 36 minutes.

“We had a disappointing first 15/20 minutes, making simple, fundamental errors in good field positions, that gave the Lions lots of possession and, to their credit, they turned that into points,” Rebels coach Damian Hill told a news conference after the game.

The home side made a great start when right wing Lionel Mapoe stepped inside and sent outside centre Waylon Murray over for the opening try after just two minutes.

Nine minutes later, Mapoe and Murray again combined well down the right, the Lions then quickly swinging the ball to the left, where outstanding flanker Derick Minnie barged his way over the tryline.

The Rebels tried to stretch the Lions with clever attacking play, but they struggled to get on the front foot against an aggressive defence, and the Lions also ruled the breakdowns in the first half. The Australians went off their feet at a ruck in the 25th minute, allowing Jantjies to kick a penalty (17-0), and Minnie then read the situation perfectly as he burst from a rolling maul through a big gap in the defence to score his second try.

The Rebels finally had some points on the board on the half-time hooter as they protected the ball well in a rolling maul, hooker Ged Robinson emerging with the try, which was converted by fullback Julian Huxley.

Having dominated the opening 40 minutes, it was a case of losing focus in the second half for the Lions, who also lost their discipline at the breakdown and conceded a string of penalties to give the Rebels momentum and territory.

“There was a lack of concentration in the second half, especially defensively, with guys not manning up in the one-on-one tackles,” Lions captain Josh Strauss said. “If we can keep concentrating for 80 minutes and play like we did in the first 40 minutes, then we’ll be a very dangerous side. We’re still playing for pride and each other.”

Lock Hugh Pyle scored two tries in three minutes for the Rebels, crossing over in the 47th and 50th minutes.

His first try came after the visitors kept the ball in the forwards, tighthead prop Jono Owen also carrying strongly, while his second came after wing Mark Gerrard had sped back into the Lions’ half from the kick-off, scrumhalf Nick Phipps was up in support and Pyle was able to take advantage of a big overlap on the right.

Huxley converted Pyle’s first try and then brought the Rebels to within two points in the 58th minute as he kicked a penalty after the Lions failed to roll away in the ruck.

Jantjies replied with a penalty which stretched the Lions lead to 27-22, but then became the villain of the piece as his clearance kick was charged down by flyhalf Jimmy Hilgendorf to give the Rebels an equalising try which was confirmed by Television Match Official Johann Meuwesen.

Huxley converted to give the Rebels a 29-27 lead, before adding a penalty which stretched the lead to 32-27.

“There’s a good spirit and camaraderie in the group and we’ve consistently shown that when we’re down, we find a way back. But too often we let ourselves down first and we need to find a way to be better as a team, to be able to put pressure on the opposition from the start,” experienced Rebels captain Stirling Mortlock said.

But Lions scrumhalf Michael Bondesio then caught the Rebels defence napping with a pop-pass down the blindside to Kriel, who powered through the cover defence to score in the corner.

The 21-year-old Jantjies kept his calm to kick the conversion and give the crowd a happy ending to the Lions’ last home game of the season, and perhaps their last in SuperRugby as they are slated for relegation next year to make room for the Southern Kings.

Scorers

Lions – Tries: Waylon Murray, Derick Minnie (2), Jaco Kriel. Conversions: Elton Jantjies (4). Penalties: Jantjies (3).

Melbourne Rebels – Tries: Ged Robinson, Hugh Pyle (2), Jimmy Hilgendorf. Conversions: Julian Huxley (3). Penalties: Huxley (2).