Odds show SA conference may be a cat fight

Over the last three Super Rugby seasons, South African fans have become spoiled. Well, as spoiled as local rugby fans can be, now there are eight-year-old children who have never seen a SA side win the competition.

For three seasons the Lions stood head and shoulders above their local contemporaries and maintained a certain aura in the competition that was once associated with the Bulls from 2009 to 2010 ... only without the silverware of course.

Their form did dip from 2016 and 2017 and they underperformed against Kiwi opposition, but it wasn’t their fault the competition’s format worked at the expense of more successful New Zealand.

History will show they reached the final and gave a credible display against the Crusaders, who also toyed with the rest of the Kiwi teams.

But even the biggest Lions fan will admit it’s hard to expect that much from Jozi’s pride this season. Or from any of the other three teams, for that matter.

There is just too little to suggest a SA side would have made big enough strides since last year to be in a position to break the Australasian stronghold on the Super Rugby title.

The Lions might have retained most of their backline players, but face an acid test up front, where they have been hit hard.

Even during their darkest hour during their last campaign, their forwards carried the can for them – in fact their three-year final run was largely built on forward domination. Good luck, Swys de Bruin! Over in Pretoria, the Bulls are a curious case. Just as John Mitchell was instilling a new philosophy on the three-time champions, he left to join the England backroom staff.

His successor, Pote Human, might be an experienced coach in his own right, but it’s still his first gig as a Super Rugby head coach and it will be interesting to see if he can build on the foundation Mitchell started laying down.

In Durban, the Sharks are always worth a look-in and seldom do they have a terrible campaign.

As four-time finalists and being okay touring, they have a good Super Rugby pedigree. But they have been plagued by inconsistencies over the past few seasons and, in all fairness, have not been the most exciting team to watch.

But winning rugby is not always the most entertaining and Robert du Preez’s charges are probably the best equipped to knock the Lions off their perch.

The Stormers are already on the back foot in the midst of the Paul Treu-saga. Whichever way the whole affair surrounding Robbie Fleck’s assistant plays out, it was not the most ideal preparation for the new season and the team’s long-suffering fans will probably not have a dramatic change in fortunes this season.

Over in Argentina, the Jaguares loom large after their good finish to last season’s group phase.

If they can start winning in SA, they might yet pip all four local sides to the SA conference title and home-ground advantage in the play-offs.

That is a very real possibility, as bookmakers have them close on the Lions’ heels to win the SA Conference, even though the pair lag no less than four New Zealand teams for the overall honours.

It could be worse I suppose. There are five Kiwi teams after all...