OPINION: The Bulls, Sharks and Stormers have combined for three home defeats and zero wins in Europe in what’s shaping up as South Africa’s worst Champions Cup campaign yet.
Back in 2021, when the Bulls, Lions, Sharks and Stormers joined the United Rugby Championship, a number of former players and coaches with an intimate knowledge of European conditions told South African fans and stakeholders to temper their expectations.
Similar comments were made after the top sides joined the European Champions Cup in 2022. Experts felt that it would be some time yet before South Africa’s best teams were in a position to win the world’s toughest club tournament.
The situation has grown increasingly complicated over the ensuing years, with one South African season bleeding into the next and SA Rugby implementing (necessary) resting protocols for the sake of player welfare.
The Springboks have managed to maintain a high standard – winning the 2023 World Cup and the 2024 Rugby Championship – while the South African franchises have regressed.
The results of the past three seasons tell a story.
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Back in the 2022/23 Champions Cup – the first instalment featuring three South African teams – there was a clear pattern.
The northern hemisphere teams struggled to survive in the searing summer heat of South Africa. For the most part, the southern sides battled to adapt to the low temperatures and nuances of the European game.
At that stage, it appeared as if the South African teams were slightly quicker to adapt to the challenge of playing abroad in unfamiliar conditions.
None of the visiting European teams won in South Africa that season, while the Sharks and Stormers won away at Bordeaux and London Irish respectively.
The play-offs served as a reality check, however, as the Bulls lost 9-33 in Toulouse in the Round of 16, while the Sharks went down 20-54 at the same venue a week later in the quarterfinals. The Stormers were also found out in their first away play-off, losing 17-42 at Exeter Chiefs.
There was criticism at the time, but there was also perspective.
It was hoped that the South African teams would take the respective lessons of playing abroad to heart, and plan accordingly for the 2023/24 season.
The 2023 World Cup served to disrupt that club season. France and Ireland bowed out of the global tournament at the quarterfinal stage, and so the French and Irish players reported to their clubs well before the start of the Champions Cup campaign in December. By contrast, the Bok players were given an extended break after winning the World Cup, with some only rejoining their clubs in late January.
Nevertheless, the two Champions Cup qualifiers from South Africa – the Bulls and Stormers – did show signs of improvement.
The Bulls beat Saracens and Bordeaux at home, and also managed to score their first away win at Bristol.
The Stormers beat title-holders La Rochelle as well as Sale Sharks in Cape Town, and downed Stade Francais in Paris.
But the play-offs produced another mixed bag.
The Bulls thrashed Lyon in the Round of 16, before losing 22-59 to Northampton Saints in the quarterfinals.
The Stormers became the first South African side to lose a Champions Cup match at home, when they lost 21-22 to La Rochelle in the Round of 16.
Evidently, La Rochelle had learned from their earlier loss in Cape Town, and were better equipped on their second visit to the Mother City.
The same was true of the Glasgow Warriors, who bounced back from a series of defeats in South Africa to win the United Rugby Championship final against the Bulls at Loftus Versfeld a couple of months later.
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Fast forward to the present. The South African teams continue to face significant challenges, in terms of a never-ending schedule and extensive travel demands.
That said, recent results would suggest that they are failing to find solutions, while their European opponents are forging ahead.
There was reason for optimism when the nation’s most well-resourced teams – the Bulls and Sharks – stacked their squads with quality players ahead of the 2024/25 season.
It appeared as if these teams were well placed to field two different combinations from week to week, without compromising their quest for results.
Both teams have been hit by injuries in the ensuing months, and to some extent, those losses are always going to impact on performances and results.
But all things considered, there is still reason to be disappointed.
The Bulls have failed to register a single point after three Champions Cup matches, and will fail to progress to the play-offs for the first time.
Expectations may have been tempered after they drew Saracens (one of the best sides in Europe), Northampton (the Premiership title-holders), Castres and Stade Francais.
And yet, it was disappointing to see how a team stacked with experienced players fell away in the second stanza of the 5-27 loss to Saracens in London.
The Bulls were favourites to beat Northampton on a sweltering afternoon at Loftus, but in the end, they lost by nine points and failed to salvage as much as a losing bonus point. The Saints, following their first visit to Pretoria, departed with five.
Jake White has coached in France, and knows how tough it is to play there. He took a relatively inexperienced team to Castres last week, and they competed well in first half, before capitulating in the second.
It’s one thing to lose, and quite another to lose 10-49. As many as 39 points were leaked in the second half.
Sharks boss John Plumtree has made a series of strong statements regarding the structure of the season, and how it is contributing to so many one-sided results in tournaments like the Champions Cup. You have to applaud the man for highlighting the biggest issue in the game.
But two or more things can be true at the same time.
The structure of the season is a mess; the Sharks have been hammered by injuries; and the Sharks have played some rudderless and self-destructive rugby at times.
The Stormers also deserve scrutiny, particularly for the 14-24 loss to Toulon in the first round.
The Cape side would be within their rights to complain about playing a ‘home’ game in far-flung Gqeberha – due to the Cape Town Stadium hosting the sevens on the same weekend.
But they were their own worst enemies in that fixture and, much like the Bulls in the battle with Northampton, and failed to claim so much as a losing bonus point.
The recent 40-0 win over Sale Sharks has revived their campaign, and they may believe that they can win against an erratic Racing 92 outfit in the final round of the pool phase.
But even a record of two wins from four matches would see them travelling to Europe for the play-offs.
On the basis of recent performances, the Stormers – and their South African counterparts – would struggle to live with the likes of a Toulouse, La Rochelle or Leinster in a knockout match.
And in the wake of another play-off defeat, the question about the South African teams’ progress – or lack thereof – will continue to loom large.
