Vodacom Super Rugby Preview – Round 1
The two most successful South African franchises kick off Vodacom Super Rugby 2012 on the local front when the Vodacom Bulls host The Sharks in Pretoria on Friday evening.
Between these two sides, they have played in six finals and a further seven play-offs (semi-finals and qualifiers), with the Vodacom Bulls winning the title three times (2007, 2009 and 2010) and the Sharks finishing runners up three times (1996, 2001 and 2007).
In the two other games featuring South African teams – both on local soil – the DHL Stormers host the Hurricanes in Cape Town, before the MTN Lions take on the Toyota Cheetahs in Johannesburg.
Vodacom Bulls vs The Sharks
First round games are never easy to predict or even properly plan for, which is why both the Vodacom Bulls and The Sharks will be happy to get this one out of the way with a victory to boost.
It’s not the easiest start to the competition for either side, even though the Vodacom Bulls have a better record against their opponents from KwaZulu-Natal. Since 1998, these two sides have met each other 16 times in Vodacom Super Rugby, with the team from Pretoria winning eight times, The Sharks seven times and one match ending in a draw.
However, in the last 10 years, The Sharks have enjoyed playing at Loftus Versfeld, where they’ve won four times out of six visits, including a humdinger last year where the Vodacom Bulls lost 23-26 in the final round to deny them a place in the finals series.
Frans Ludeke, coach of the Vodacom Bulls, remembers that game in Pretoria well.
“They beat us at Loftus last year and basically knocked us out of the play-offs, so they will have confidence to play here. They are a class side full of internationals and we will have to execute our game plan to perfection to beat them,” Ludeke said.
Pierre Spies, who will captain a Vodacom Bulls side that has lost a combined total of 715 Vodacom Super Rugby caps since the departure of Springboks Gurthrö Steenkamp, Gary Botha, Victor Matfield, Bakkies Botha, Danie Rossouw, Fourie du Preez, Jaco van der Westhuyzen and Jaco Pretorius, said his team will be ready.
“We are committed to start a new era at the Bulls and I am pleased with the way every player has responded to that vision,” Spies said.
The battle amongst the forwards is always something to behold when the Vodacom Bulls and The Sharks clash. John Plumtree, coach of the KwaZulu-Natalians, said his team got good practice in this department when they faced the Southern Kings in a pre-season friendly last weekend.
“They drove us a fair bit. We will be faced with that against the Bulls so we have some work to do in that department. In saying that, the forwards were generally good all over the field,” said Plumtree.
“(Our) backs looked dangerous, which is great. I thought the ball handing and our passing was good, we created one or two more opportunities but we didn’t finish. However, it was very wet out there, we had steady rain and the conditions were tough. Overall, I was pleased with the effort.”
Head to head (since 1998)
Vodacom Bulls Sharks
8 Won 7
7 Lost 8
1 Drawn 1
299 Points For 346
346 Points Against 299
26 Tries Scored 37
37 Tries Conceded 26
Vodacom Bulls vs The Sharks
Date: Friday, 24 February 2012
SA time: 19:10
Venue: Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
Referee: Jonathan Kaplan (South Africa)
Assistant referees: Pro Legoete (South Africa), Tiaan Jonker (South Africa)
Television match official: Gerrie Coetzee (South Africa)
DHL Stormers vs Hurricanes
It’s been nearly six years since the Hurricanes last won in Cape Town and if the DHL Stormers have their way, the team from New Zealand’s capital will keep on feeling the heat at DHL Newlands.
On 11 March 2006 the ‘Canes won 23-19, but since then the DHL Stormers have improved dramatically, reaching the Vodacom Super Rugby final in 2010 and winning the South African conference last year.
But that doesn’t guarantee anything and DHL Stormers coach Allister Coetzee is well aware that his team needs to hit the ground running if they are going to replicate their feats of the last two years.
“The Hurricanes have always been a team with good open field runners and counter-attacking capabilities. They live of turn-overs, but I also think (Hurricanes coach) Mark Hammett has brought more structure to their play since taking over last year, so we’re expecting much-improved set piece from them,” said Coetzee.
“This game will be a huge challenge in all aspects. It’s the start of the season and our aims are to get a fair share of the possession, play in the right areas on the field and take our scoring opportunities. It’s exciting that the competition is finally starting. It will be highly competitive in all departments.”
The history between these two sides is very even, with the DHL Stormers ahead by 7-6 in matches played. The figure is very similar for encounters played at DHL Newlands, where the home team has won four of the previous seven matches in Cape Town.
Head to head (since 1998)
DHL Stormers Hurricanes
7 Won 6
6 Lost 7
0 Drawn 0
328 Points For 287
287 Points Against 328
34 Tries Scored 33
33 Tries Conceded 34
DHL Stormers vs Hurricanes
Date: Saturday, 25 February 2012
SA time: 17:05
Venue: DHL Newlands, Cape Town
Referee: Marius Jonker (South Africa)
Assistant referees: Stuart Berry (South Africa), Cobus Wessels (South Africa)
Television match official: Shaun Veldsman (South Africa)
MTN Lions vs Toyota Cheetahs
The MTN Lions will be out for revenge when they host the Toyota Cheetahs in Johannesburg on Saturday afternoon. The last time these two sides met in Vodacom Super Rugby, on 6 May 2011, the team from Bloemfontein gave their former Cats-partners a rugby lesson when they won 53-19 at Coca-Cola Park.
It was the MTN Lions’ biggest defeat of last season against a team that ultimately finished three positions ahead of them on the Vodacom Super Rugby log.
Earlier in 2011, when these two sides met in Bloemfontein, the team from Johannesburg ended a 17-match losing streak against the Toyota Cheetahs at the Free State Stadium by winning 25-20.
MTN Lions coach John Mitchell, in his second season with the team from Johannesburg, said his team is ready for action and to improve on their performances in 2011.
“We’re hungry for success, which I’ve seen in our preseason games. I think our style of play is innovative and exciting. Half the teams will win and half the teams will lose this weekend, so we’ll aim to be on the right side of that equation on Saturday,” Mitchell said.
Naka Drotské, into his fifth season as head coach of the Toyota Cheetahs, realises last year’s big win at Coca-Cola Park belongs to history and will not count for anything on Saturday.
“It’s going to be a very tough game, we know that. It’s never easy in Johannesburg, and we’re facing a team that can build on a very good victory in last year’s Absa Currie Cup,” he said.
“It would be a mistake to underestimate the momentum they got from that Currie Cup triumph.
“Winning there would be the ideal start for us, because we face the Bulls next week and then we leave on tour. But it won’t be easy and although we have good depth and some exciting youngsters coming through, we’re mindful of how things can change from one year to the next.”
Interestingly enough, both sides will be captained by a player with the surname Strauss – the MTN Lions by the bearded loose forward Josh and the Toyota Cheetahs by Springbok hooker Adriaan (who will be playing in his 50th Vodacom Super Rugby match for the Cheetahs), whose cousin, Andries Strauss, is the Free Staters’ vice-captain.
Head to head (since 2006)
MTN Lions Toyota Cheetahs
3 Won 4
4 Lost 3
0 Drawn 0
144 Points For 226
226 Points Against 144
15 Tries Scored 24
24 Tries Conceded 15
MTN Lions vs Toyota Cheetahs
Date: Saturday, 25 February 2012
SA time: 19:10
Venue: Coca-Cola Park, Johannesburg
Referee: Mark Lawrence (South Africa)
Assistant referees: Sindile Mayende (South Africa), Stefan Breytenbach (South Africa)
Television match official: Johann Meuwesen (South Africa)
Other fixtures this weekend (SA times):
Friday, 24 February
08:35: Blues vs Crusaders (Auckland)
10:40: Brumbies vs Force (Canberra)
Saturday, 25 February
08:35: Chiefs vs Highlanders (Hamilton)
10:40: Waratahs vs Reds (Sydney)
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