The thoughts going through my mind right now concerning this year’s Super Rugby final are those that conjure up frustration.
Frustration towards the team I’m rooting for in Christchurch.
South African rugby followers could’ve been less desperate than they currently are for a Super Rugby title because the Lions should’ve been competing for their second Super Rugby title in as many years, and against the same team.
Johan Ackermann’s men simply should’ve won their first Super Rugby title last year, and fourth for South Africa at the comfort of their home turf, Ellis Park.
The Lions, now under the mentorship of Swys de Bruin, had all the foundations set for them to be crowned champions but instead, and desperately disappointingly, lost 17-25 to the mighty Saders.
Yes, the red card to Kwagga Smith at a crucial moment of a rugby match turned the dynamics of the match, but no one will remember that in years to come.
Ultimately the men from Johannesburg should’ve closed the deal.
True rugby followers will tell you that the hurt and frustration post-match was merely about the loss itself, but one felt that the Lions had just let their best chance of winning Super Rugby slip.
This because of numerous reasons: it was the last season for the man who significantly helped in turning the Lions into one of the two-to-three superpowers of the competition, Ackermann.
They had learnt a lot of lessons after losing away to the Hurricanes during the 2016 final.
They were wiser and more than capable of beating the Saders, but only at Ellis Park.
In Christchurch, they’re just capable. Unlike last year’s final, the odds are firmly against them this time around.
They might have managed to reach their third final on the trot, and deservedly so, but this side is not as good as Ackermann’s 2017 version – the log table does not lie. Even their performances suggest so.
The Saders just lost two games during the round-robin phase of the competition, with the Lions losing almost half of their pool outings.
South African teams have traditionally struggled in New Zealand, even on the international stage.
We all know what happened in the 2016 final and that was against the second best team in New Zealand, the Hurricanes.
Furthermore, no South African franchise has ever won a final on foreign soil.
I’m not completely writing off the Lions, but their chances of causing what would be one of, if not the greatest upset in the competition’s history, are close to nothing.
I’m one of those who feels like their best chance of winning has gone.
And this is where my frustration stems from.
Kick-off: 9.35am – @SabeloBoksburg
