Opinion
“Toto, I have a feeling we’re not in Kansas anymore,” Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz declared to her dog and loyal companion.
South African teams participating in their first round of Champions Cup fixtures will be feeling the same as Dorothy and Toto come kick off on Saturday.
The landscape of international club rugby is about to take its first tentative steps this weekend in transforming itself into a truly global competition.
With the advent of the three heavyweight South African clubs the Bulls, Sharks and Stormers (the Lions will be in the Challenge Cup which is the competition one rung below) will be getting their first taste of Europe’s elite club rugby competition.
The Champions Cup mirrors the Champions League in football, the best against the best and this weekend will test the South African clubs to their nth degree.
South African fans should be cautious and wary of how well their clubs will fare during the initial stages of this competition; it will take some time for these teams to get acclimated to the rigours of what it takes to progress in this tournament.
The South African sides upon initially joining the URC (United Rugby Championship) took some time to get up to speed with playing in northern hemisphere conditions but soon found their feet.
The Bulls dismantled the powerhouse and multiple European champions Leinster in Ireland and the Stormers finished as champions in their first foray into the tournament.
Nobody expected the South African sides to compete as well as they did, however the tests that await them will be a far greater step in intensity and quality.
While the URC is an outstanding competition in its own right, their teams that perhaps lack an overall squad quality, some of what would be deemed “smaller” clubs just don’t have the finances for a squad containing depth which gives a team the ability to go deep into the knockout rounds.
Just about every side involved in the Champions Cup is littered with internationals and not just in the starting XV, but on the bench too.
Jake White, the Bulls head coach having won the European Challenge Cup with Montpellier in 2016, was recently interviewed and said as much.
“We will be coming up against teams packed with internationals. European teams do not just draw from the player pool of their country – they have stars from all the top rugby nations.”
“I fear South Africans are a little naive about what lies ahead. Champions Cup teams are much stronger than those in the URC. They boast packs that weigh more than a thousand kilograms, they have brilliant backs. I think we are in for a bit of a wake-up call from this weekend.”
Herschel Jantjies runs in for a try. (Photo by Ashley Vlotman/Gallo Images/Getty Images)
It is going to be an acid test for the South African clubs and how quickly they can adapt to not only the intensity and quality of the Champions Cup but also the different interpretations of northern hemisphere referees and the inclement weather when they play abroad.
That being said it will also be fascinating to see how the European teams adapt to playing away fixtures in the Republic in what is essentially the southern hemispheres cricket season.
Consider Harlequins playing the Sharks in Durban for a 3pm kick off time in December, at that time it’s too hot to be on the beach, let alone playing a high intensity rugby match.
However, for the three South African clubs playing in the Champions Cup this is where you want to be, testing yourself against the very best players in Europe and a few marquees stars cherry picked from New Zealand, Australia, Argentina, the Polynesian countries and a few South Africans for good measure.
This competition is not far off from Test match rugby and in the long run this only going to benefit the South African clubs and South African rugby in general as we become familiar with the rigors and difficulties of this tournament.
South African clubs will need to be patient and adaptable before thoughts of stamping their mark on Champions Cup, they will need to learn to crawl before they can walk.
Join The Roar rugby editor Christy Doran, former Wallaby Matt Toomua and a cast of regular and special guests as they look at the biggest issues in the game on The Roar Rugby Podcast. If you’re looking for great odds on the next game check out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.
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