South Africa needs surge in URC
As the year draws to a close, the land of the world champions has only two teams in the top eight of the United Rugby Championship (URC).
The Bulls, who are fourth, and the Stormers, who went into their match yesterday against the Sharks in eighth, are the only South African teams who occupy play-off spots as the tournament heads into the new year.
The Lions, who have perhaps performed to script with three wins and four defeats, are 10th, while the Sharks, who were second last on the points table before taking on the Stormers, have underwhelmed with only one win in seven matches.
South Africa’s woes are perhaps understandable, given the nature of the fixture list and the absence of their top talent in the first three months of the tournament. The Springboks missed the first two months as a result of the RWC and their mandatory break from the game after its completion.
The Stormers suffered on the road in the initial stages but have since slipped out of their tailspin. Back home they have been formidable and will likely surge up the points table as they continue to regroup.
Their win over the Bulls last weekend was a timely flex of their URC muscle. A bonus point victory over the Sharks in Cape Town will see them take the lead above the Bulls in the South African Shield.
They will then take an URC break until February 17, when they meet in the return match against the Sharks in Durban. A fortnight later they clash again with the Bulls before a sequence of four home matches.
The Sharks can use their trip to Cape Town as an opportunity to breathe new life into their campaign. Their matches against the Stormers as well as the Lions next week are not only opportunities to catapult into mid-table but the chance to restore confidence and belief.
They have looked disjointed this season and they will need a lot of cohesion to beat the inaugural URC champions.
The Bulls have scored the most points and tries thus far in the competition but their challenge has hit a speed bump with backto-back defeats. Another defeat against the Stormers would have come as a crushing blow, but they are still very much in URC contention. Six of their remaining 10 matches are at home. One of them is against the Stormers.
The Bulls will next see action when they host the Lions on January 27.
The Lions have looked a more organised unit in this campaign. Their next four matches home and away derbies against the Sharks and the Bulls may well set the course for the remainder of their campaign.