Super 14 to upset apple cart?

2008-02-14 15:44

Johannesburg - Upsets in the Super 14 are not infrequent - but there is nothing like a local derby to upset the apple cart and Saturday's two matches in Bloemfontein and Cape Town could well continue the trend.

The Bulls, Super 14 defending champions, go into the den of the foe, so to speak, when they play the Stormers at Newlands on Saturday.

If there is a team the Capetonians love to hate, it is the Bulls - and two drubbings in the last two outings and a string of three defeats in a row will ensure a warm reception for Fourie du Preez's side.

In the other match, the Lions, hard hit by injuries, play the Cheetahs in what many will see as a repeat of the Currie Cup final last year, when the Cheetahs scraped home after coming from 18-6 behind.

It is difficult to make a prediction in either of these two matches. The Bulls have lost their inspirational coach Heyneke Meyer, their captain Victor Matfield, the best number two lock in the world, Bakkies Botha, hooker Gary Botha, the brilliant Pierre Spies, retired stalwart fullback Johan Roets and World Cup wing Akona Ndungane.

Pride and self-belief

That would have been that for a lesser side. But then, Meyer had for years planned succession and depth at the Bulls. That fact, added to the pride and self-belief that are part and parcel of any Bulls side, will see them come out fuming.

But will that be enough? Wylie coach Rassie Erasmus has that knack of upsetting the odds - and the Stormers will be a handful.

Du Preez, who will captain the Bulls, says Erasmus has certain strong points in his make-up. "What worked for him when he coached the Cheetahs, will also be part of the Stormers' pattern and strategy," Du Preez predicted this week.

The Stormers' inside backs, with four Springboks in halfbacks Enrico Januarie and Peter Grant and centres Jean de Villiers and Gcobani Bobo, must be contained. But the key to victory is their tight five - and if they don't stand up against the notoriously slow-starting Bulls, the Cape Battle will be lost.

There are new laws to take note of, and little has been seen or heard from the Stormers who have decided to can their warm-up matches.

It is unpredictability in its fullest sense - and it is a match neither side dare lose. Making up lost ground in this competition is never easy, despite what the Bulls did last year.

The Lions, bereft of their three World Cup Boks Jaque Fourie, Andre Pretorius (both injured) and Enrico Januarie (now with the Stormers), have also lost their captain Ernst Joubert, and they'll be without Willem Alberts as well.

More physical

The injuries to the Lions' two top-class loose forwards Alberts and Joubert, will deny fans the clash between two top-class loose trios. But the Lions are a lot that prosper when the chips are down, and the Cheetahs, also with new faces and uncertainty regarding their team, will not have it their own way even if they run on as favourites.

Jacques-Louis Potgieter and Conrad Barnard will soon have to settle the flyhalf issue, left vacant by match-winner Willem de Waal's departure. And they've lost props Ollie le Roux, Os du Randt and Jannie du Plessis while CJ van der Linde is currently also injured.

But, Cheetahs coach Naka Drotske has warned they'll nevertheless be more physical this year. If their lack of depth doesn't catch up with them as the season progresses, they should be very competitive.

Again, it's a difficult one to call, but the Cheetahs should be favourites by virtue of home ground advantage, their win in the Currie Cup final and also in the two sides' last Super 14 match last year won 16-10 by the Cheetahs at Ellis Park.

The Blues kick off Saturday's programme when they host the Chiefs in Auckland in a match the home side should win.

The Waratahs are at home to the Hurricanes, who have lost a number of their star backline players. In this match it will be interesting to see how the Australians shape up after having played under the new laws last year and also because they have been clamouring for less scrummaging.

Saturday's fixtures (SA time): Blues v Chiefs: 08:35; Waratahs v Hurricanes: 10:40; Stormers v Bulls: 17:00; Cheetahs v Lions: 19:05.

- SAPA