THE South African Super rugby challenge hasn’t had the greatest star

THE IMPORTANCE OVERSEAS WINS IN WORLD CUP YEAR

THE South African Super rugby challenge hasn’t had the greatest start given the poor form of last year’s finalists, the Bulls and the Stormers; the failure once again of the Cheetahs to improve from the Currie Cup; and the success of New Zealand teams over here in already winning two of three games played.

It is early days in a four-month long competition, sure, but the importance of South African teams performing well in a World Cup year has a precedent. In the Super 14 of 2007 our teams improved dramatically on their abject failure against the Kiwis and Aussies in 2006, especially overseas, and both captain John Smit and coach Jake White said a key factor in the build-up to RWC France was the mental strength the squad took with them to Paris after a series of off-shore wins earlier that year.

The fact that the Sharks and the Bulls contested an all-South African final was hugely important, of course, but possibly more so more so was the belief that came from almost every player in the World Cup squad having won more overseas in 2007 than before (the exceptions were the Cheetahs players who to this day have not won since their 49-19 victory over the Highlanders in Invercargill in 1997. SuperSport commentators take note – the Cheetahs HAVE won an overseas game in Super Rugby, so stop telling us they haven’t).

The word from Smit and White before the 2007 Super 14 was that the teams had to learn to win regularly overseas because, to state the obvious, the World Cup was not being hosted in South Africa.

And in 2007, an overseas famine became a feast. Offshore, the Stormers beat the Hurricanes and the Waratahs; of all people the hitherto useless Lions beat the Force and the Reds; the Bulls beat the Brumbies, Waratahs and Highlanders on a record-breaking tour; and the Sharks beat the Reds and the Blues.

The Sharks and Bulls finished first and second on the log and resoundingly beat the Blues and Crusaders respectively to give South Africa an important pre-World Cup high (the Tri-Nations lost significance because the Boks did not field full-strength teams).

Naturally, winning Super 15 overseas games in New Zealand in the year of their World Cup will yield crucial psychological gains for South Africa, and maybe it is not such a bad thing that our teams, with the exception of the Sharks, have started badly in the early rounds.

The Durbanites are the only team so far to play an overseas match, and they whacked the Force and are looking good to beat the Rebels tomorrow.

The Bulls have one last match before heading overseas and surely they must have learned that when they keep the ball ( so far hardly ever) they dominate teams, and that all this kicking they have been doing simply has given the opposition opportunity to beat them.

The Stormers have been terrible, mostly because their 9-10 combination has been the worst in the competition. They need to settle on a 9 (NOT cumbersome Ricky Januarie) and get Peter Grant started (he is world class) and leave him there.

The Lions have been wonderfully promising, but now they have to prove that they are more than must valiant losers.

BY MIKE Greenaway .www.iol.co.za