What a flop: SA’s so-called ‘big four’ fail to make Currie Cup final — again

The 2023 Currie Cup final will, for the second year in a row, be contested between two teams who do not play in the United Rugby Championship.

The Cheetahs, booted out of several international competitions they have competed in to make way for the so-called big four, will host the Pumas, the defending champions from 2022 and a side who have been promised greater international competition, but been given nothing, in Saturday’s final.

Jimmy Stonehouse’s Pumas won their first Currie Cup title after beating Griquas in Kimberley last year.

So, for the second year running, the Currie Cup final will be played for between teams who really have only one competition to think about. The Cheetahs did feature in the Challenge Cup this year, but they played in only a handful of games, and it is hardly a competition to keep the players and coaches busy week-in and week-out.

Big four

So, while it is certainly easier for teams such as the Cheetahs, Pumas and Griquas to be competitive in the Currie Cup because that is their sole focus, it is shocking and concerning that the bigger, richer unions such as the Bulls, Lions, Sharks and Western Province have for two years now failed to make the Currie Cup final.

These so-called “big four” have bigger budgets, bigger player pools, bigger coaching structures … bigger everything. And they should be able to compete better in the Currie Cup.

So why haven’t they? Is it because their depth isn’t that great, or is the Currie Cup now simply an after-thought for these unions?

Or, is it that the coaching teams aren’t strong enough? Or is it that in some cases the players are tired after a long season of playing in several different competitions?

Bulls

It is difficult to single out which of the big unions have been the most disappointing in the Currie Cup.

The Bulls though, with a team stacked with URC players, losing as badly as they did to the Cheetahs in the semi-finals on Saturday, have hit a new low. They will have plenty to think about in the off-season.

The Sharks, so promising for so long, lost when it mattered most in the semi-finals, and that at home, while the Lions and Western Province didn’t even make the last four.

But, well done to the Cheetahs and Pumas for making the final. It is sure to be a thrilling contest in Bloemfontein this weekend.