Power to powder blue
12 Oct 2006
Keo, in his News24 column, reminds the Muppits that Saturday’s Currie Cup winner was identified some time ago.
This is what I wrote in my column on September 27:
‘One team of the top five is going to miss out and it is going to be the Lions. Brave and brilliant in the last seven matches, the Lions will curse their early season experiments that cost them easy points. Lesson learned by Eugene Eloff who will not easily again surrender league points to prove a point to his senior players.
‘The Cheetahs will lose in Pretoria on Saturday but still end top of the table, with the Bulls ending second on points difference from Western Province who’ll take the five league points at Newlands. The Sharks will hammer the Falcons to set up another trip to Bloemfontein and a semi-final exit from the competition.
‘The Sharks, my early season call to win the competition, have mixed and matched so much this season that they cost themselves a home semi-final and with that any chance of winning the competition. The Sharks can’t beat the Cheetahs at the moment. In the other semi-final match-up Western Province will travel to Loftus and this time there won’t be an ambush.
‘I’m tipping the Bulls to win on Saturday, win against Province the next week and then travel to Bloemfontein and set the record straight for last season’s defeat to the Cheetahs in the final.’
Are these words, written more than two weeks ago, to be viewed as some sort of prophecy? Absolutely not. Because I also wrote in May that the Waratahs would win the Super 14 and the Wallabies would triumph in the Tri Nations.
Domestically, though, it was always going to be the Bulls once the Sharks started fading through excessive experiment.
That’s why I could write with such conviction on September 27 as to how the Bulls march to the trophy would unfold. It is now October 11 and nothing in my view has changed. I am still backing the Bulls to go to Bloemfontein and win. Individually, they are a better unit and cohesively they have made as much impact as the Cheetahs in the last month.
Take nothing away from Ollie le Roux and Rassie Erasmus. The former, in his role as captain, has been inspirational. The latter is the most exciting thing to happen to the South African coaching scene. He is talented, innovative and definitely not a one season wonder. South Africa rugby is healthier in the coaching department because of Rassie’s emergence.
But if you want to know why the Cheetahs won’t win on Saturday, then you simply have to look at the tight five composition of the Bulls and the kicking game of Derick Hougaard at flyhalf. The tight five will set up the victory for the visitors and Hougaard’s boot will close the deal.
There won’t be much in the final, but all you need to win it is one point.
Statistics favour the Bulls. They’ve lost just one out of their last 10 against the Cheetahs, while winning the last four in Bloemfontein. The defeat happened to be in last year’s final and it took a miraculous comeback and the bounce of the oval ball to sink them.
The surprise element a year ago was with the Cheetahs, but this weekend there won’t be any such tricks in the party packs handed out during the final. The Bulls know exactly what to expect and they are in no doubt as to what they have to do to succeed. This is a victory that will be fashioned on preparation as much as execution and with Heyneke Meyer back from his overseas travels his input is crucial.
Pote Human has settled as Bulls coach, but Meyer’s technical and analytical contribution will be massive to the Bulls success. He remains the Director of Rugby at the Bulls and the man in charge.
The Bulls have been the form team in South African rugby in the last month. They’ve put 50 past the Sharks in Durban, given the Cheetahs 41 points in Pretoria and scored 45 comfortably against Western Province a week ago. They’re scoring tries with ease and Hougaard is kicking well.
Gary Botha’s captaincy has been outstanding and the tight five are fronting for each challenge. The Cheetahs, this season, have thrived on forward domination against most teams. The exception has been when playing the Bulls. That is why they lost in Bloemfontein earlier in the competition, got hammered in Pretoria and will again come second best on Saturday.
The path to the final was recorded here a fortnight ago. And nothing in the last fortnight convinces me to change the call that has the Bulls to win the Cup again.
1,320 Comments
Pages: « 1 … 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 [25] 26 27 » Show All
12 Oct 2006, 18:07 pm
yes pieterman.
12 Oct 2006, 18:07 pm
Danger,
Her or the pie?
12 Oct 2006, 18:09 pm
The only reason Gibbs & Cronje got busted was because they overscored in their games.
Its the same thing the drug dealers do, they tip off authorities to divert attention.
12 Oct 2006, 18:09 pm
Ag Wallabie, whatever!
I’m off to watch the Fairly Odd Parents on the Disney Channel.
My fave show.
12 Oct 2006, 18:10 pm
1203
Yip
12 Oct 2006, 18:10 pm
red, I don’t remember her that well…
Nah, she was fantastic…should’ve stuck to it.
12 Oct 2006, 18:10 pm
Dawn they have Ozzie rugga on the Disney Channel tonight!!!
12 Oct 2006, 18:11 pm
Looks like Wallabbie saw Merino on the post and had a bit of a premature.
12 Oct 2006, 18:11 pm
RedCard, LOL!
12 Oct 2006, 18:12 pm
1205:
RULE 1: If you are gonna get invloved in something sinister, DONT(!) f#ck with the underworld.
12 Oct 2006, 18:12 pm
And as a parting shot:
LMAOIKBSDAIDIT!!
12 Oct 2006, 18:12 pm
LOL @ oxford!
12 Oct 2006, 18:12 pm
1207
and it is more entertaining than what you get on supersport and sabc on staurday and sundays.
12 Oct 2006, 18:13 pm
But it doesnt beat ‘Today-Tonight’ does it wallabie!
12 Oct 2006, 18:13 pm
Dawn,
Apart from killing Britney Spears, what it the rest!
12 Oct 2006, 18:14 pm
You watch ‘today tonight’?
12 Oct 2006, 18:15 pm
#1203, who do you think the other two are??? both playing in the Free-state now?
12 Oct 2006, 18:16 pm
LMAO I KILLED BRITNEY SHE’S DEAD AND I DID IT !!!
12 Oct 2006, 18:16 pm
Boje & Pieter Strydom.
12 Oct 2006, 18:16 pm
Spears, Boje, and ?
12 Oct 2006, 18:17 pm
Have a lovely evening Dawn. Cheers.
12 Oct 2006, 18:17 pm
Dawn, don’t let ig see that…he’ll ban you straight up.
12 Oct 2006, 18:17 pm
wolfman, rodger the dodger
12 Oct 2006, 18:18 pm
1222. She’s actually hoping to be bound straight down, by Ig.
12 Oct 2006, 18:18 pm
was bacher involved in the cronje dealings?
Bacher senior.
12 Oct 2006, 18:19 pm
oh yeah, side arm Roger! what ever happened to Henry Williams?
12 Oct 2006, 18:20 pm
Spears I remember that game, Telemachus had an injury and bowled only about 5 balls and strangled one of the batsmen down the leg side.
Forget who the batsman was, but he ought to be investigated for nicking that ball it was about 2 feet outside legstump
12 Oct 2006, 18:21 pm
Pieterman,
Ek het nog net ‘n bloemfontein koekie gehad!!
Hehehehehe
12 Oct 2006, 18:21 pm
Dangerbot
Do me a favour, will you?
Phone 871-1898 and ask for Pieter Beukes (auditor), he is in Groenvlei, Du Bot Str 10, and tell him Pieterman said he must give you a bottle of his best…. Tell him I miss him, my no 1 buddy in SA and that I will see him in December…’daar teen die hange van Perelberg’.
Would you do that for me? I will consider it a favour. Thank you.
12 Oct 2006, 18:23 pm
Imagine what we could find in rugby if we smoked out the dodgers???? Penalty kick missed that cost teams matches/home semi-finals, sponsors getting involved – conspiracy?? Glad both sides are sponsored by Vodacom this weekend……I seem to remeber a game last year in the S12 in newlands????
12 Oct 2006, 18:23 pm
The rumblings here was that cronje was made an example of.
12 Oct 2006, 18:23 pm
Redcard – caution on the acusation. i put the comment and the subsequent follow-ons in moderation. i will return them if you wish.
12 Oct 2006, 18:24 pm
IGGGG!!
12 Oct 2006, 18:25 pm
Ig, better remove my previous comment then. #1233
12 Oct 2006, 18:25 pm
Yip, and there I would come up for the Aussies in how they protected Warne and Mark Waugh, but referring to my posts 1227 (Ig stop deleting please), how can you be protected if the ‘protector’ is involved.
12 Oct 2006, 18:26 pm
Ig, if I used te word apparently, you may return it, if not, leave off please.
12 Oct 2006, 18:27 pm
Libel is a *****!
12 Oct 2006, 18:27 pm
Red – its shaky ground and this isn’t the platform for this kind of disscussion.
In short i don’t want to have to sell you down the river, because thats where this is going.
12 Oct 2006, 18:27 pm
Leave it off, IG.
Wallabie did you get the just of it?
12 Oct 2006, 18:28 pm
Cool. Ig.
12 Oct 2006, 18:28 pm
Red
I did.
12 Oct 2006, 18:28 pm
Ig. you are a good moderator!
12 Oct 2006, 18:29 pm
No doubt, that Warne also gave pitch reports and suggested to people if they were about to bat or bowl , difference is that SA Cricket wanted to deal with it out in the open the Aussies, really dealt with it as low key, – I do believe Warne admitted getting some money – difference is he insisted he didn’t throw matches. You want to know why all the Aussies say g’day mate to each other – hell they were all a bunch of in-mates in the beginning
12 Oct 2006, 18:29 pm
Cheers Red, appreciate it.
12 Oct 2006, 18:29 pm
Yip sorry forgot for a moment what I posted in 1210.
12 Oct 2006, 18:30 pm
I’m reporting the lot of you. Please keep a toiletry bag handy, you never know what time of night the knock on the door will come.
12 Oct 2006, 18:31 pm
The good Rev, hows your coaching cv coming?
12 Oct 2006, 18:32 pm
Spears, what will happen will happen. But at the end of the day, would Cronje have been on that flight if they had taken him to one side and said stop your ****, we’ll take it on the chin this time.
The sad thing is that he we will not EVER have a better cricket captain.
12 Oct 2006, 18:32 pm
man, i wouldnt last 5 minutes in prison. I am blonde, have blue eyes, and am uncannily pretty for a man! they would pass me round like ummmm, i don’t have a simile for this situation!
12 Oct 2006, 18:33 pm
spears
Pitch and weather reports, Oh my Gosh whats next?
Bribe the caretaker and weatherman they need the money the most.
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