‘Brutal’ derbies beckon as Super Rugby kicks off
SPRINGBOK lock Lood de Jager expects “more bruta l than usual” clashes to be at the core of the 2019 Super Rugby season, as it becomes a 21week tria l for t he World Cup.
The 15-team, three-conference southern hemisphere club championship k icks off on Friday when the Waikato Chiefs host the Otago Highlanders.
As the competition plays out through to the final on July 6, bubbling beneath t he surface is an intrig uing sub-plot.
Coaches must weigh the pressure to manage the work load of li kely World Cup players, and the 2018 leading players cannot assume they will still be in demand when the World Cup starts in September.
“Reputations count for litt le i n t his context,” t he Bulls lock De Jager told SARugbymag.com.za.
“How many times have we seen a young guy forcing his way into the nationa l set-up and play ing a big role at the World Cup?
“You just can’t ta ke any t hing for granted.”
The loca l derbies in each conference are t y pica lly ferocious af fa irs but De Jager is relishing t he fact t hey will be tougher t han ever t his year.
“They will be more bruta l than usual in the lead-up to the World Cup. It will be like World Cup tria ls t his season. I’m look ing for ward to it.”
The Canterbur y Crusaders, who play the Auck land Blues on Saturday, are bidding for a t hird successive tit le under coach Scott “Razor” Robertson, who has an impressive 34-3 record from t wo years with t he All Blacks-laden side.
In 23 years of Super Rugby, the Crusaders have been v ictorious nine times and they are aiming for 10 wit h most of last year’s squad, with the notable absentee being t he retired Wyatt Crockett.
But a need to ease the work load on t heir gala x y of stars – Kieran Read and Sam Whitelock will miss the first month – is one reason why the Crusaders have only once won the championship in a World Cup year, and that was back in 1999.
Pari Pari power
The Chiefs, wit h X-factor players Damian McKenzie and Brodie Reta llick, will be wit hout t he inspirationa l Sam Cane for at least 12 weeks as he recovers from a serious neck injur y, while t he Wellington Hurricanes need to plug the gaps left by Brad Shields and Julia n Savea.
The Auck land Blues have long been under-achievers and have pinned t heir hopes t his year on replacing coach Tana Umaga with former long-ser v ing Crusader Leon MacDonald, and uniting blockbuster midfield pair Sonny Bill Williams and 36-year-old Ma’a Nonu – who has returned after three years in France.
The Highlanders, who have relied on heroic defence to compensate for a lack of ball-winning abilit y, have beefed up t heir pack wit h t he inclusion of t he 2.04-metre (6f t 8in), 128-kg (282lb) giant lock Pari Pari Park inson.
The Golden Lions, runners-up in t he last t hree seasons, are again seen as t he biggest t hreat from South Africa despite tight for wards Jacques van Rooyen, Ruan Dreyer and Franco Mostert heading to Europe.
But Coastal Sharks coach Robert du Preez summed up his frustrations after severa l modest seasons by say ing t hat wit h t he ta lent at his disposa l “we are running out of excuses. We have to succeed this year”.
The Bulls have bolstered signed t wo old hands: 32-year-old backrow for ward Duane Vermeulen and hooker Schalk Brits, 37.
The Waratahs rate as Austra lia’s brightest hope with Ashley Adam- Cooper and Karmichael Hunt joining Bernard Foley, Kurtley Beale and Israel Folau in a first-class back line.
The enigmatic Quade Cooper adds punch to the Melbourne Rebels after moving from the Queensland Reds, where he was frozen out last season by coach Brad Thorne.
The Jaguares, the Argentina Pumas under another name, have Gonzalo Quesada as new coach and a new captain in Jeronimo de la Fuente but have lost back line genera l Nicolas Sanches to Stade Francais.