Final Super 12 2005 Wrap

Crusaders 35 Waratahs 25
The final was played and very predictively won by the Crusaders. They were just too good for the Waratahs. If it was not for the fact that the Crusaders took their foot off the pedal and let in three very soft tries towards the end, this final score would have been very high.

Lets start for the front. The Waratahs pack tried very hard and David Lyons and Phil Waugh did not stand an inch back for the Crusaders pack. The powerful force, led by a ball stealing Richie McCaw, was just too much and the black and reds got so much quality ball, they did not know what to do with it.

Justin Marshall was once again king behind the pack and showed that he has, despite the fact that he is not very popular, still a master behind a good pack. It was however Rico Gear who once again caught the eye. His counter attacking ability reminds one of the Howlett/Mulliaina/Rocokoco combination and his skills and little jabs ahead a bit of Carlos Spencer. Did he not learn his rugby in Auckland? He has definitely made a mark against his name for selection in the All Black jersey. Leon McDonald was another star at the back and he must also have given the selectors a lot of food for thought.

After completion of the Super 12, I hate to admit it, but the SA and Aussie camps should have a fairly clear idea who will be their starting lineups or at least their starting 22. There is probably a position or two that they are thinking about. In the All Black squad I think only Umaga, Carter, Jack and McCaw are sure of their places. The rest are all up for grabs with lots of talent around to fill the gaps. Wanna win the Trinations? The Springboks and Wallabies are going to find it very, very tough.

Other Rugby
Apart from Theunie Lategan, the whole SA rugby board has kissed and made up. Theunie decided to break all ties with rugby. Some of the older readers may remember his father. He was a very good centre named Tjol, who used to partner Ryk van Schoor in midfield, to form one of the best centre combinations the world has ever seen.

Brent Russell ended up as star as he played in the Barbarian team that whipped the England second stringers by 52-39. Russell had the Twickenham crowd on their feet with devastating footwork and breaks to run in two tries and have a hand in a couple of other. Baabaa rugby suits him very well. The other star was the man of the match, Wendell Sailor. The big Wendell, who had a bit of a disastrous Super 12, played a Lomu-type game by breaking tackles with pure power to also score two tries. For England, their winger Paul Sackey looked like a good prospect for the future.

The Final Word
In 1987 the All Blacks of David Kirk were crowned as the first Rugby World cup champions. In 1991 they failed to reach the final when Australia's captain, Nick Farr Jones lifted the trophy. In 1995 South Africa tasted the glory when Francois Pienaar lifted the trophy and Australia had a miserable tournament.

1999 it was turn of John Eales to lift the trophy as South Africa reaches the semi finals only through an amazing five drop-goals from Jannie de Beer. When the 2003 tournament was played, it was the first time that a team, Australia, reached two finals in a row, but they could not make it two titles in a row. England had the opportunity to do the honors.

With the exception of Australia, there is a very common thread through the history of the prestige rugby tournament. You come off one title to be very lucky to make the semi finals in the next. That is something I call the English bubble – only because England is the latest victim.

All rugby teams have this idea that they should build a team for the World Cup. That has often lead to excellent players who unceremoniously get dumped in favour of youth so that the building process can take shape. The selectors and coach will therefore have a team that has some old warlords with about half that only have a handful or so tests behind their names. This has proven to be the success story to winning the cup - Trying share the intelligence and experience of the older hands with the exciting ability of the young generation. It is truly the exception when a Jonah Lomu, Johnny Wilkinson, David Campese, Joost vd Westhuizen, etc make an impact when they are still very young.

So what we have is a team with have experience and let's call the other half raw talent. After the world cup, the first thing that happens is that the experienced players start retiring. That takes a bout a year or two, so after a year or two, the team that had a great combination, is now cut down to size by all the other teams who are now starting to form an experienced core with young raw talent around them.

That is what I call the bubble or in the latest case, the English bubble. You built up to a certain point in time and then you burst and lose all that have kept you together and made you a world champion side. Just like a bubble!

That is my opinion, what is yours?

Futures topics:

• The best player in the world

• The man of the match award

• If you want a short-term job, become a coach in SA!

• Referees and their impact on matches

• The allocation of the new Super 14 franchise in South Africa

• Ex rugby players who play analysts

• International tours

• Bonus points in competitions

• Yellow and red cards in rugby

• The English bubble

• The format of the Rugby World Cup and spreading of the game

• Some of my favourite players through the years

There are many more, but if there is something you would like me to add to the list, please feel free to let me know!