Curwin Bosch during the Super Rugby match between Emirates Lions and Cell C Sharks at Emirates Airline Park on April 05, 2019 in Johannesburg, South Africa. (Photo by Lefty Shivambu/Gallo Images)
With the Stormers starting this weekend’s round of Super Rugby fixtures with a notable win in Melbourne over the Rebels, South Africa will fancy its chances of recording a clean sweep of victories.
None of the Lions, Bulls or Sharks’ matches – against the Brumbies, Reds and Jaguares respectively – can be considered guaranteed strolls, but neither should one not expect them to triumph.
Even the Lions, who are under pressure, have won their last two meetings in Canberra.
Here are a few talking points.
Could a slow game in Canberra help the Lions?
Kwagga Smith of the Emirates Lions in action during the Super Rugby match between Emirates Lions and Vodacom Bulls at Emirates Airline Park on March 02, 2019 in Johannesburg, South Africa. (Photo by Anton Geyser/Gallo Images)
Whisper it softly – as the Lions don’t like to consider themselves a ‘boring’ team – but Swys de Bruin’s charges’ best performances to date have been against the Jaguares and Sunwolves, where they’ve actually played more practical rugby.
Indeed, the men from Ellis Park have adapted surprisingly well when asked to curb their natural attacking instincts.
The Brumbies have maintained their reputation as Australia’s most pragmatic side in Super Rugby, meaning its unlikely that they’ll suddenly start playing sparkling rugby.
Instead, it could be a grind.
And that might give the Lions confidence.
However, the picture becomes murky if the Lions can’t front up physically … and that has led to a few nightmares already this season.
Sharks now need to be consistent
42-5 at fortress Ellis Park was a pretty emphatic illustration of what the Sharks can do on a rugby field.
Everything is now in place for the Durbanites: a settled squad, a majority of in-form and confident players and an established game-plan.
It’s little wonder coach Robert du Preez doesn’t want to contemplate yet another defeat at home, even against the mercurial Argentinians.
“It was only a matter of time before this team hit its straps” said the Sharks mentor.
“Having said that, that game is now in the past. We’ve never wavered in our faith in our plan. I’ve always maintained our template is perfect. It’s just now about sticking to it. Small margins count in this competition.”
Bulls need to transform Loftus into a fortress again
A fan during the Super Rugby match between Vodacom Bulls and Chiefs at Loftus Versfeld on March 23, 2019 in Pretoria, South Africa. (Photo by Lee Warren/Gallo Images)
A big contributing factor to the Bulls’ aura a decade back was how impenetrable they were at Loftus.
That’s gone missing in the past few years.
It was hoped that the renewed hope of 2019 might signal a return to those days, yet – despite decent overall results – the Bulls have already lost twice at the hallowed venue.
As stand-in skipper Handre Pollard noted earlier this week, no revival will be sustained if home games aren’t won ruthlessly.
“We need to win more regularly if we’re going to call it Fortress Loftus again,” he said.
“It doesn’t mean anything if you call it that, but don’t win there. Nobody will fear us. Loftus is special to us in our own way. We haven’t dominated as we did in the glory years, but it’s still a great stadium. We need to earn our respect there again.”
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