The 28-year-old was released by Griquas at the end of the 2011 Currie Cup campaign after only spending one season with the Kimberley union. Rose will now hope to impress First Division losing finalists the EP Kings over the next four weeks to earn a contract.

‘Earl is with us on a trial agreement,’ EP Kings head coach Alan Solomons told keo.co.za. ‘He will be on trial until 17 February.’

Rose has suffered a series of disappointments over the last couple years. Prior to his exit at Griquas, he spent five years at the Lions before being released ahead of the 2010 Currie Cup. This came after he went AWOL midway through a provincial sevens tournament in September 2010. His agent then confirmed that he was looking for opportunities overseas, specifically in France and Scotland, but these plans never materialized.

By Gareth Duncan

Rumours of the Johannesburg franchise being bankrupt have circulated since late last year and was further fuelled by a leaked document from former multi-million Rand investors, the Guma Group, detailing the depth of union’s financial crisis.

In the document, Robert Gumede and Ivor Ichikowitz of the Guma Group alleged (among other things) that the Lions were struggling to pay back millions in loans, that the union has up to 90 players under contract and some of the players are receiving big salaries in spite of not being at training, that Dick Muir (former Lions coach) received a salary of about R2.2 million per year, even though he has not been actively involved at the Lions since May 2010, and that they were unable to pay salaries in October and December 2010, as well as in January 2011.

Lions president Kevin de Klerk has denied the claims and this website understands he later met privately with the contracted players to assure them of the union’s financial stability and ease fears around non-payment of salaries and potential retrenchments.

However, those fears appear to have become a reality, with a well placed source informing this website that up to 15 players have been told their services are no longer needed. Among those players are Wandile Mjekevu, Kevin Buys, Jannie Boshoff, Dries van Schalkwyk and Trevor Hall. De Klerk has reportedly been bombarded with calls from players’ agents and has been engaged in lengthy crisis talks with these agents as well as potential investors in a bid to steady the sinking ship.

The root of the problem lies with the Guma Group’s decision to withdraw their involvement with the franchise in late 2011, citing the Lions’ unwillingness to meet the transformation criteria that the group said was central to their decision to invest. Gumede and Ichikowitz are known to have lined up lucrative contracts for the union before their departure, whereupon those contracts were lost leaving the Lions in a dire financial situation.

Keo.co.za was unsuccessful in its attempts to reach De Klerk for comment.

By Ryan Vrede

It was reported on Thursday that the Lions are looking to offload 15 players from their payroll. This website understands that this is being done to ease the union’s financial woes which surfaced last year following the failed relationship of former investors Robert Gumede and Ivor Ichikowitz.

Wandile Mjekevu (who has recently had a trial at the Sharks), Kevin Buys, Jannie Boshoff, Dries van Schalkwyk and Trevor Hall are some of the players that are expected to be released.

However, head coach Mitchell has denied these claims, saying that the situation has been misinterpreted.

‘The media has got it wrong. There are no financial issues,’ Mitchell told keo.co.za. ‘We are just retrenching players who do not live up to Super Rugby standards. That way, we are creating an elite squad here at the Lions. This is all part of the restructuring plans that we have for the union.’

By Gareth Duncan

Ahead of the Currie Cup semi-final against Western Province, Golden Lions president Kevin de Klerk sat down to pen a letter to each member of the squad of 22.

To Doppies la Grange, he wrote, ‘You are one of those rare players who can turn a game … but we haven’t seen the Doppies factor for a while. We need it.’ To Elton Jantjies, he wrote that he believed he could become the best flyhalf in the world and that he needed to continue working hard on the basics.

And so he went.

Such was his painstaking attention to saying the right things, it took him five hours.

For De Klerk, the original lion king, it was a matter of honour to be associated with the Lions of 2011. Indeed, when they followed up a week later with their rousing Currie Cup title triumph against the Sharks, he was beaming.

They had come through tortured times and he had inherited a mess, but here was growth at its most resplendent.

Exactly 40 years before, he had made his first start for Transvaal, the Rooibonte. In the ensuing years he had watched despairingly as the grand empire built by Louis Luyt in the 1980s slowly crumbled.

De Klerk, who earns his money in the demolition business, is central to the Lions narrative because he is such a core part of their revival. He wasn’t motivated by the gravy train, the free tickets or the headlines. What motivated him was history.

‘I grew up in Rosettenville, the son of a miner,’ he recalls. ‘I was always guaranteed a fight on the way home – and that was usually with the strongest girl.

‘I played rugby because I loved it. My first game for Transvaal in ’71, I locked alongside my hero, Piet Botha. I always appreciated what administrators and coaches did for me.’

That same year he was in the side that drew with Northern Transvaal in the Currie Cup final. He would go on to play many more games for Transvaal and later shared in a Springbok series triumph against the All Blacks. Lions blood courses through his veins.

Many factors contributed to the Lions’ ascendancy this year, but arguably one of the most important was the very first issue De Klerk tackled when he assumed the presidency in 2009.

‘I needed to get the team ethos back. We were very fragmented – practising in Randburg, gyming in Bryanston and then playing at Ellis Park.’

The point was that the team was literally and figuratively all over the place. And it showed as they became a laughing stock.

De Klerk’s philosophy was that the Super Rugby and Currie Cup sides were the shop window to the union. But the window was muddy, tatty, embarrassing.

‘We didn’t have the money … we had to farm with what we had. There was talk of unloading Derick Minnie and Michael Killian and I said no. They needed encouragement and belief.’

The next thing he did was work on morale, among the team and the administrative staff.

‘The first thing I did was pull the dynamics together – coaching, training, motivation – and helped elevate the spirit among the staff, the executive committee, the board and the trust. I involved equity partners too, but that backfired.’

De Klerk still hosts a bi-weekly session with his staff over tea and biscuits.

‘The improvement in morale has been phenomenal,’ he says, stressing that any success achieved has been the result of a collective effort.

‘Among the team, I wanted to bring back the culture of old, how we used to sing songs and tell rugby stories.’

In De Klerk’s first few months, Jake White’s ‘Winning Way’ was brought in, as was Dick Muir. The results were mixed, but one happy spinoff was that Muir recommended coach John Mitchell to the union.

De Klerk liked the New Zealander the instant he met him.

‘His demeanour, attitude and philosophy were just right. Take my word for it: there isn’t a better technical coach in world rugby and there is no way I would allow him to be poached by the Springboks. He is with me until 2013, at least.’

Mitchell arrived with the reputation of being a straight shooter. His direct style had won him few friends in Perth, where he was the founding coach of the Western Force, and he was known for wielding the big stick.

By all accounts, Mitchell’s players aren’t his biggest fans, but De Klerk likens that to his days in the army. ‘I hated my corporal, but I was never fitter in my life.’

The Mitchell method isn’t for everyone. The Force team ultimately rebelled, but the Lions were different, responding to his strong sense of order and discipline.

‘I think it’s because South Africans grow up with a deep respect for their elders and leaders,’ says De Klerk.‘John talks to the cause. Hy dra nie doekies om [he doesn’t beat around the bush]. There are lots of teams where it’s a case of the tail wagging the dog. You can’t become friends with your coach. John has no problem saying, “Listen pal, you’re not cutting it.”’

One moment during the Super Rugby season perfectly demonstrated his attitude. After losing 34-30 to the Chiefs in a classic game, there was a feeling that the Lions had done well. Mitchell wouldn’t hear of it.

‘We let this one slip. I’m not interested in people praising one another because they came close to winning.’

It’s an attitude recognised by Josh Strauss, the piratical figure who became a lightning rod for the team’s fortunes.

‘The talent was always there; the coach just managed it better. He instilled discipline and he made us choose core values. The guys he finished with are the guys who can handle it, who can take the criticism.’

Strauss and La Grange addressed the team during the captain’s run on the eve of the final. Their message was that they had taken so many pot shots from the media and supporters that nothing the Sharks did could blow them off course. When the players were handed their match jerseys, the number ‘9912’ was embroidered on, to represent 1999, the last time they had won the Currie Cup, and the dozen years since.

Part of what made Mitchell so successful was the training team he assembled. Wayne Taylor of New Zealand, his conditioning coach, is a stickler for fitness. He got stuck in. Even now, he says they are three years off where they ought to be physically.

Backline coach Carlos Spencer’s reputation precedes him, suffice to say that he hates losing. Despite his quiet presence, he lets the team know exactly how he feels. It was Jantjies who earned the plaudits after scoring 24 points in the final, but less dwelled upon was the bag of tricks Spencer endowed him with. The jinks, the subtle touches and the clever kicks are straight from the Spencer manual.

Then there was the quiet, brooding presence of Johan Ackermann, who fired up a pack of forwards that could by no measure be called outstanding. But JC Janse van Rensburg, Bandise Maku, Franco van der Merwe and others were like a band of brothers who stuck together and fought together.

Elsewhere, you only had to look at the form of players like La Grange, Strauss, Michael Bondesio, Minnie and Jaco Taute, a group of renegades, aspirants and nearly men, to realise that Mitchell’s great gift was his ability to draw the very best out of them.

But the Lions’ journey to Currie Cup success wasn’t without potholes. The fallout with their equity partners was damaging and there was also the messy departure of Jano Vermaak, one of De Klerk’s great regrets.

‘To lose him was a helluva blow, but then Bondesio came in and injected a tempo we never had. Watching every player develop was a thrill, but a particular highlight was JC Janse van Rensburg. He has the heart of a lion despite not being physically imposing. It’s hard to dwell on individuals, there were so many. Michael Rhodes, Elton, Josh Strauss, Franco … I saw Franco walking down the tunnel the other day and told him, “Now you’re starting to look like a lock, my mate.”’

Notwithstanding the difficulty in signing new players – ‘You don’t just pull them off shop shelves,’ says De Klerk – he believes they are well set to approach the new Super Rugby season with greater confidence. There is no hubris surrounding their Currie Cup win, just the certainty that they need to build on it.

‘I must reiterate that the victory belongs to the players,’ says De Klerk. ‘We were behind the scenes. All glory to them.’

The success in the Currie Cup will doubtless help attract players, as it did in early November when a number of new signings were announced, including the Cronjé brothers (Guy and Ross), Stephen Greeff, Callie Visagie and Hendrik Roodt. Mitchell will doubtless be shopping for more.

There’s no outlandish claim to cracking the Super Rugby play-offs, but De Klerk says he would be disappointed if they didn’t finish in the top half. The last year was pock-marked by what-could-have-beens, but with many young players now entering their third season of Super Rugby, the expectations are rooted in realism. ‘We’ve helped stabilise the rocky ship and they feel it.’

Happily De Klerk is in it for the long haul. He may be hobbling around thanks to recent knee replacement surgery, but the to-do list remains long and he remains determined.

Right at the top is preserving the status of the Lions as Saru ponders how to make six go into five for the 2013 Super Rugby season. De Klerk won’t tolerate talk of the Lions being removed or merging with the Cheetahs.

‘It’s been tough, but I’m going damn nowhere. I won’t allow these doors to close.’

– This article first appeared in the December issue of SA Rugby magazine. The January-February issue is on sale now.

GLRU deputy president Altmann Allers told the Sunday Times that the union is in ‘the process of huge restructuring’ and that ‘people have been retrenched’, but dismissed reports that player salaries would not be paid this month.

‘I wonder if the rumours will go away when the players get paid this week?’ Allers countered. ‘It is true that we are going through some financial difficulties but the players’ salaries will not be affected. I don’t know if it is a misunderstanding or if someone misinterpreted the situation, but we are going to meet our obligations in 2012 and beyond. We are in financial difficulty but that is exactly why we are cutting back.

‘There are a number of players whose contracts we didn’t renew,’ he added, careful not to go into specifics. ‘We are in negotiations to terminate [the contracts of] 13 others.’

Allers estimates the union will have 40 to 45 senior contracted players in 2012, 30 fewer than last season.

The 32 year old released a statement on his official website on Monday night. Wilkinson believes he has gone as far as he can with this England team, and so has decided to call time on his illustrious career.

‘I never ever believed that I would be able to give up on this dream which has driven me to live, breathe, love and embrace the game of rugby from the earliest days that I can remember.

‘The time has come, however, for me to realise that I have gone as far as I can go with this England team and that the time is right for others to enjoy the same honour and pride that I have felt over the past 15 seasons and beyond.’

Wilkinson played 91 Tests for England and scored 1 179 points (1246 points in 97 Tests including games for the British & Irish Lions), featuring in four World Cup campaigns. While the most recent of those tournaments ended in disappointment, Wilkinson will be remembered as the man who kicked the extra-time drop goal to win the 2003 World Cup final against Australia.

World Cup-winning coach Clive Woodward paid tribute to the England great.

‘Jonny was special and he scared the opposition. Everyone has to pat him on the back. The way he defended and attacked, he was a very special player,’ said Woodward. ‘All of us involved in that team [in 2003] just felt very lucky and privileged to have had him around at that time.

‘I’d just like to say well done to him. He has done so much for not just English rugby but also world rugby on the field, and especially off the field.’

While he has retired from international rugby, Wilkinson will continue to play for Toulon in France.

Had it not been for Alan Zondagh, Sharks fans might have been spared the frustration inflicted on them by Strauss in the Currie Cup final, and he might instead have been attending to our furry friends in their hours of need. Before he was spotted playing club rugby by the former Western Province coach, the Strauss life plan was directed towards saving animal lives as a vet.

In the latest SA Rugby magazine, on sale this week, we reveal how Zondagh helped Strauss to play for Boland, and how his impressive performances for Maties in the Varsity Cup resulted in a trial at the Lions.

Strauss also reflects on the Lions’ triumphant Currie Cup campaign and looks ahead to next year’s Super Rugby tournament.

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Also in the new issue:

– SA Rugby magazine reveals how the Lions went from Super Rugby chumps in 2010 to Currie Cup champs in 2011

– John Mitchell on transforming the Lions, living in South Africa, preparing for Super Rugby, and the Springbok coaching job

– The Sharks started to develop a new team dynamic during the 2011 Currie Cup

– Heyneke Meyer’s wants the Bulls to become the world’s best domestic side again. We reveal his master plan

– Boland Kavaliers coach Eugene Eloff on winning the Currie Cup First Division, losing half of his side afterwards, and Saru’s decision to have six teams in the Premier Division

– SA Rugby magazine assesses the candidates who will be vying for the Springbok flyhalf jersey next year

– In an extract from his new autobiography, Butch James reveals how he was promised the Springbok No 10 jersey at the World Cup only to fall behind Morne Steyn in the pecking order

– Graham Henry finally has his inner peace – and his World Cup. Now he can get on with the rest of his life

– From zero to hero, jeers to cheers, agony to ecstasy, no one has a better handle on the fickle world of international rugby than World Cup winner Stephen Donald

– Thierry Dusautoir is an inspirational leader and officially the best rugby player on the planet

– The inaugural Rugby Championship will kick off on 18 August next year, two weeks after the Super Rugby final

– Francois Louw speaks to SA Rugby magazine about his new life in Bath, the recent World Cup campaign and why he hasn’t given up on playing for the Boks

– The Springbok Sevens went into the 2011-12 World Series with a settled squad

The 31-year-old centre’s 10-year tenure with the Sharks has come to an end after his contract was not renewed. Jacobs has confirmed that he will return to the Cape, where he was born in Kraaifontein, with his family. However, it is not yet known where he will play his rugby.

Jacobs’ told Die Burger that he hopes to join the Stormers or Boland next season.

‘The Cape is my home and I wouldn’t easily say no if the Stormers are interested. I have talked to Boland but haven’t heard back from them yet,’ he said.

Jacobs made 156 appearances for the Sharks since 2001, 71 of them in the Currie Cup and 88 in Super Rugby. He also represented the Bulls and Cats before making the move to Durban.

On Thursday, Die Burger, reported that Western Province was once again in talks with Cape Town’s City Council about a possible move to the Green Point venue. Titus has since responded on WP’s official website.

‘Whilst we continue to remain open to considering our position, a considerable number of important elements would need to be resolved, including what the best financial model for WP Rugby would be,’ Titus said.

‘Any decision would need to be taken by the General Council of the WPRFU. At the moment no such decision has been taken and no such decision is pending. WPRFU will continue to play all official league Super Rugby, Currie Cup and Test rugby at Newlands.’

The Cape Town Stadium boasts a capacity of 55 000. Newlands hosted close to 50 000 fans for the Super Rugby semi-final earlier this year.

When the Boks crashed out of the recent World Cup at the quarter-final stage, De Villiers told the media that his journey with the team was over.  However, he’s since changed his mind and wants to continue next year.

‘Not winning the World Cup makes me feel like there is unfinished business, that the story isn’t finished,’ De Villiers told SuperSport.com rugby writer Gavin Rich. ‘So if they call for applications for the Springbok job I will definitely apply for it. Why not?’

De Villiers added that the way the Boks had exited the World Cup, with a poor refereeing performance from Bryce Lawrence contributing to their defeat to the Wallabies, had influenced his decision to re-apply for the job.

‘I don’t want to make excuses. We got knocked out and as I said when we got back from overseas, a quarter-final defeat wasn’t good enough and we failed the nation. But what was so frustrating was that we appeared to be peaking at the right time, and there was still room for further growth. I feel the story has been left unfinished,’ he said.

‘I made a lot of mistakes along the way, but you learn from those mistakes, and I believe that I have learned sufficiently that if I was to get a chance to do it again, I wouldn’t make those same mistakes again.’

The English club confirmed the news on Saturday and the former SA U21 lock will arrive in Newcastle on Monday evening. The 28-year-old joined WP from the Bulls in 2008 after spending six years at the Pretoria union. Fondse will meet fellow South Africans Greg Goosen, Ashley Wells and Corne Uys at the Newcastle Falcons.

‘He is a great player who is really well respected in South Africa and we’ve sealed another top notch second row – He is a tremendous athlete,’ said head coach Alan Tait. ‘It now gives us more options in there and it will obviously increase competition.’

The news comes after WP director of coaching Rassie Erasmus confirmed last week that the union will not sign any forwards heading into the 2012 Super Rugby campaign. Erasmus feels the team will be well equipped with a full-strength squad, which includes the likes of Andries Bekker, Rynhardt Elstadt, De Kock Steenkamp and Hilton Lobberts in their second row ranks.

Burger becomes only the fifth player to win the title more than once, having also won it in 2004. He follows in the footsteps of Naas Botha (who won it four times), Uli Schmidt, Bryan Habana and Fourie du Preez (who all won it twice). Du Plessis, who spent most of the World Cup on the Bok bench, was the best player in SA according to his fellow players.

The Golden Lions were rewarded for their Currie Cup triumph with the Team of the Year award, while John Mitchell was named Coach of the Year.

2011 SA Rugby Award winners:
Player of the Year: Schalk Burger (WP)
Players’ Player of the Year: Bismarck du Plessis (Sharks)
SA U20 Player of the Year: Arno Botha (Bulls)
Super Rugby Player of the Year: Sarel Pretorius (Cheetahs)
Team of the Year: Golden Lions
Coach of the Year: John Mitchell (Lions)
Young Player of the Year: Pat Lambie (Sharks)
Currie Cup Premier Division Player of the Year: Josh Strauss (Lions)
Currie Cup First Division Player of the Year: Elgar Watts (Boland)
Springbok Sevens Player of the Year: Cecil Afrika
Vodacom Cup Player of the Year: Lionel Cronje (WP)
Try of the Year: Sibusiso Sithole (SA vs Australia, Edinburgh Sevens final)
Referee Award: Craig Joubert
National Club Champs Player of the Tournament: Justin Wheeler (UJ)
Women’s Achiever of the Year: Cebisa Kula
Craven Week Player of the Tournament: Jan Serfontein (Free State)

The 27-year-old left the Cape Town union after the Stormers’ Super Rugby campaign last year. He signed for French club Bayonne, but was released this month and has decided to rejoin Province on a two-year deal.

Before leaving for France, Pietersen played 56 matches for WP and scored 345 points. He has also played 21 Super Rugby matches for the Stormers, scoring 107 points.

It’s been reported that seven young players have joined the Currie Cup champions since the end of the domestic season.

The Cronje brothers, halfback pair Guy and Ross, have left the Sharks for the move to Johannesburg. The 22-year-old twins from Michaelhouse have been in the KZN structures since 2006, but after a lack of senior opportunities, they’ve decided to move on. This takes the count of former Sharks players in the Lions squad to seven, as the likes of Pat Cilliers, Michael Rhodes, Waylon Murray and Warren Whiteley have all made the same transfer recently.

The Lions have also recruited a second set of brothers in scrumhalf Whestley and centre Bradley Moolman, who represented the Leopards and Bulls U21s respectively this year. Other signings include Maties duo lock Stephan Greef and hooker Callie Visagie while lock Hendrik Roodt also joins after spending the year with Griquas.

Clearly a team of champions fills a stadium, regardless of its geographical positioning. There is something special about Ellis Park when it is filled to capacity and something equally haunting about the stadium when empty seats visually dominate.

There was nothing to spook the Lions in the Currie Cup final and from what I am told they played in the final just like they have for most of the Currie Cup season.

Having been in New Zealand for the last eight weeks watching another tournament the first glimpse I got of the Lions was in the final and the boys deserve every cuddle they’ll be getting until the start of the Super Rugby season.

Then it all starts again, but unlike earlier in the year when there was hope among Lions followers, this time there will be conviction that once again the Lions can realistically be spoken of as a top-six tournament team.

The Lions, not disrupted by national call-ups in 2011, managed to build continuity in selection and performance and 12 of the starting XV played in 13 of the league matches. You can’t simulate that kind of continuity and it was a telling advantage in the final.

The Lions are very well coached. This was already evident during the Super Rugby season, but then they lacked confidence in their own ability and possibly didn’t have the trust in each other. Not so in the final, as they played like a unit aware of their strengths and also mindful of individual weakness.

The Sharks, having rushed back their World Cup Springboks for the semi-final and final, played like a team of individuals. We know the talents of those who represented the Boks at the World Cup, but this was another lesson that a team will always beat a bunch of individuals.

The Sharks’ World Cup Boks tried hard, but they looked out of sorts and emotionally they looked drained. Even the world’s best hooker Bismarck du Plessis played with the emotional fatigue of a man who just wanted the season to end.

The Sharks struggled for cohesion and lacked discipline. The players conceded penalties regularly and it was as if the desire wasn’t quite there to trust the defensive systems. One team looked like they had to be there; the other like they wanted to.

It was a very good result for South African rugby and it was particularly rewarding for those who entrusted Mitchell to find a roar last heard when another former All Blacks coach (Laurie Mains) enjoyed success in Gauteng.

The Lions pack, lacking the individual skill of the Sharks forwards, didn’t want for anything else, and again the desire, the conviction and the control came from the less fancied names in the home team. More of that in the 2012 Super 15 and those names will be spoken of as potential Springboks.

One Lions player who has a Bok jersey is Elton Jantjies. He got it a year ago against the Barbarians at Twickenham, and he looked like a kid asked to do a man’s job. He struggled in a mix and match outfit, played from too deep and kicked poorly.

Jantjies, at Ellis Park on Saturday, played with authority and composure. He never missed a kick and he never mishit a line kick. He defended well and commanded respect with a flyhalf performance as good as any in the history of the Currie Cup final.

Mitchell, a year ago, questioned the wisdom of Jantjies been chosen to tour with the Boks. The Lions coach felt the youngster’s tuition as a professional player was still in its infancy. Mitchell was spot on because it needed six months (and a torrid Super Rugby campaign) to get Jantjies back to being as influential as his teenage sporting pedigree suggested he could be.

Jantjies and fullback Jaco Taute have huge promise as Test players, but more importantly in the context of South African rugby is the potential of the Lions in next year’s Super Rugby competition.

The final again showcased how much natural talent there is in this country and why the expectation on national results should always be for premium return.

The support for rugby in South Africa is unrivalled. New Zealanders may consider their land to be the spiritual home of rugby, but my experience is the Kiwis love the All Blacks more than rugby. In this country we simply love rugby.

To see the Lions roar in 2011 is to demand the Boks to soar in 2012.

After 12 years of silverware starvation, the Lions have finally fed.

The 26-point victory completed a dream campaign – which included a table-topping run throughout the league phase and an impressive 29-20 semi-final win over a WP side that had six World Cup Springboks in their match day squad. This result was also the Lions’ first Currie Cup final triumph at Ellis Park in 61 years.

The Lions wanted it more than their opposition. The Sharks, who struggled for momentum and lacked a clinical edge, looked second best for most parts of the match. The hosts ran faster, tackled harder and toiled tirelessly around the park. That determination – no – that hunger for victory influenced John Mitchell’s ‘no-name brands’ to thump a strong, Springbok-laden Sharks side.

Those who backed a win for the visitors pointed to the quality of their squad, which included seven World Cup Boks. But this match proved to be one game too much for the likes of Bismarck du Plessis and Beast Mtawarira, who struggled to make any trademark impact after long and tiring year. There was also a lack of cohesion, despite this group spending the past three weeks together.

The Lions, who’ve played generally the same side since day one of Super Rugby in February, worked like a well-oiled machine. But during this impressive team performance, the player who made the ultimate difference was flyhalf Elton Jantjies. The youngster showed Mitchell was correct in selecting him ahead of veteran Butch James during the play-off stages. After starring in the Lions’ semi-final win last Saturday, the 20-year-old displayed a Man of the Match performance as he kicked 24 points without missing one attempt.

The platform was set with a good showing in the first half. The Lions mixed moments of impressive attacking play with a resilient defence to hold a 19-6 half-time lead.

Jantjies and fullback Jaco Taute, who nailed a 57m penalty, traded penalties with flyhalf Frederic Michalak early on before wing Michael Killian scored the first try of the match. From a scrum in centre field, centre Doppies la Grange broke the Sharks defence through a set-piece move. His offload put Killian clear.

But it looked like the half would end badly for the Lions. Prop CJ van der Linde had a moment of madness in the 32-minute when he threw Sharks skipper Keegan Daniel over his shoulder whilst clearing a ruck. It earned him a yellow card. The Sharks built momentum with their one-player advantage and paid four visits to the Lions’ red zone. However, they couldn’t find a much-needed finish and the Lions escaped without conceding any points.

Then there was a controversial moment early in the second half when Willem Alberts scored a try that should not have been allowed. The Sharks flanker broke the Lions’ defensive line, but lost the ball forward in the process. However, the knock-on wasn’t sighted by the officials and referee Mark Lawrence, who seeked advice from his assistant, awarded the try. The Sharks were back in it as Michalak’s conversion made it 22-16. Game on.

The Lions, however, had other plans as that was the Sharks’ last score of the match. The following 31 minutes was arguably the best passage of play the Lions have showcased this year.

It was a strong performance that secured 20 points to seal the famous win. First, Pat Cilliers powered over from close range after the Lions attacked from deep. Jantjies added two penalties before Taute had the pace to finish another attacking move in the corner. The following conversion was the final nail in the Sharks’ coffin.

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TAUTE’S LONG-RANGE PENALTY
Jaco Taute was knocking over kicks from 60m before the game so it wasn’t a surprise when he stepped up in the fifth minute to nail a 57m penalty that gave the Lions a 6-0 lead.

SHARKS’ LOST LINEOUT
The Sharks took the ball through 15 phases at the end of the first quarter, won a penalty inside the Lions 22 and kicked for the corner to set up a 5m lineout. But Bismarck du Plessis failed to find his jumpers and the hosts were able to relieve the pressure.

LA GRANGE’S BREAK
Doppies la Grange burst through the Sharks’ suspect midfield and sent Michael Killian away for a try that gave the Lions a 19-3 lead after 25 minutes.

WHITELEY’S STEAL
With CJ van der Linde having been yellow carded for stupidly dumping Keegan Daniel at a ruck, the Sharks launched an attack against 14 men in the last play of the first half. A try looked inevitable but Warren Whiteley (a blood replacement for Joshua Strauss) made a critical steal for his side.

LIONS KEEP THEIR COOL
The Sharks had scored a controversial try through Willem Alberts when the flanker had clearly knocked on, which cut the Lions’ lead to eight with half an hour remaining. It was vital that the hosts didn’t let the officials’ blunder get to them and they didn’t with Pat Cilliers being driven over for a try six minutes later.

TAUTE RUBS IT IN
Elton Jantjies’ superb boot had given the Lions an unassailable 35-16 lead, but Killian ensured that this would be a real thrashing when he broke through the Sharks defence and passed to Taute, who dived over in the left corner and then savoured the adulation of the crowd.

It’s been a fairytale story for the Lions and their Kiwi head coach. The famous 42-16 win over the Sharks in the final is a result that will be celebrated and remembered for a long time. But you have to look back to the start of Mitchell’s tenure to truly grasp this achievement.

Heading into the last year’s Currie Cup season, the Dick Muir-coached Lions had endured the worst Super Rugby campaign in the history of the competition as they lost all 13 games. It was the darkest stage of a 12-year period of disappointment. Their 2010 domestic season didn’t start off well either as they suffered a four-match losing streak. But there was an improvement in performance later in Mitchell’s debut campaign with the Johannesburg union, which included a five-match winning streak. The Lions didn’t qualify for the semi-finals but they were commended for a respectable finish.

There were more mixed results in this year’s Super Rugby season, but a triumphant run in the Currie Cup indicated that the structures set 16 months ago was finally came into effect. Mitchell credited the players’ for their growth as a team.

‘Just look back to those moments when we were given that yellow card and when the Sharks scored their try,’ Mitchell told keo.co.za. ‘When we were down to 14 men, we remained calm and the guys didn’t drop in their performance. The try shouldn’t have been awarded as it was a knock-on. A former Lions side would’ve folded at that stage, but this team didn’t. My team handled those incidents very well as we adapted to the situation.’

Being a foreigner, Mitchell was then asked if he knew how much this Currie Cup title meant to the people of Johannesburg.

He replied: ‘Probably not. But I know these past few weeks have been phenomenal for the city. The fact that we played in a packed Ellis Park shows how well the guys are playing, and the support has been massive.

‘When the news first broke that I was going to coach the Lions, all my friends asked me “what the hell are you thinking?’’. But I love a challenge and my dream was to restore the pride that was once here at Ellis Park.

‘I know it’s been a frustrating number of years for all Lions fans, who probably had to turn the telly upside down to see their team on top of the log. The results weren’t going the team’s way and that hurts because supporters have an emotional connection to their team. I’m very happy with what has been achieved over the last 16 months.’

So where to for the Lions from here? What will be needed for a stronger showing in Super Rugby?

‘We will want to perform better in Super Rugby, but there’s still a long process ahead for us,’ said Mitchell. ‘I think we can still improve our performance a notch. We are physically better than before and we won’t change our game plan next season, but we can be more accurate in our execution. There is also quality depth and we will have increase it heading into a hectic season next year. There are also other areas we can work on as we head into Super Rugby, but that we’ll focus on that at a later stage. We need to savour this moment and enjoy our break after a long season.’

By Gareth Duncan, in Johannesburg

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The Sharks had seven World Cup Springboks in their starting XV but were outplayed by a side that had just one (with another on the bench).

‘It’s always a challenge to get the Boks back, especially after what happened to the guys in New Zealand,’ said Plumtree. ‘But you definitely can’t blame them for our defeat today … they’re the ones who got us here. And it’s not like we haven’t had to deal with this situation before as we usually get the Boks back after the Tri-Nations [in a non-World Cup year].

‘The fact is that we were outplayed in every area of the game and were beaten by the better team. They were backed by a massive crowd, they attacked and defended well, and when they got in front it was always going to be difficult for us.’

However, Plumtree admitted that the Lions had benefited from having so little disruption to their side.

‘They had created a lot of momentum in this competition and we weren’t able to stop them today,’ he said. ‘They clearly had more cohesive ability. I don’t think the Boks are going to be too involved in the Currie Cup in future and the side that doesn’t get affected as much [by Bok call-ups] will profit.’

I’ve never seen so many Lions jerseys. It’s as if the run-in to the Currie Cup final has woken up the Transvaal die-hards from a 12-year slumber.

The expectation was that the Sharks’ fans would dominate the 65 000-strong full-house crowd, but this is not the case. Yes, usually the home supporters outnumber the visiting fans. But if you take the crowd attendances at Ellis Park over the last two years into account (which have been notably poor), the sea of red that has flooded the stadium this afternoon comes as a surprise.

But it doesn’t stop there.

The festivities at the ground today are heart-warming. My trip down the hill from the parking at Johannesburg Stadium into Ellis Park had the feeling of a mini-fan walk. There were a couple of activities made available, you could buy your fast food and Lions or Sharks merchandise, and the beer garden was pumping. The vibe outside the stadium was joyful, and a packed Ellis Park should rock harder than the Kings of Leon concert at Soccer City later tonight.

Lions skipper Josh Strauss is on the cover of the match programme, but it’s his beard that’s the main attraction among the fans. There are a number of supporters who have dressed up as Lions rabbis and pirates, all donning the Strauss beard. One wonders how long the No 8 will keep the rugged look. The idea behind growing it was to persuade his fiancé to make the move to Johannesburg to live with him, which she has made recently. When Strauss was asked midweek, he replied: ‘It’s going nowhere’. The romantic gesture has turned into an Ellis Park gimmick.

There was some rain forecasted in Johannesburg today, but there are clear skies. The only discomfort is the presence of a light wind, but the conditions set the platform for a great game of rugby. No matter who wins today, let’s hope this year’s Currie Cup campaign will kick-start another golden age in Lions rugby. Johannesburg and its locals needs it.

By Gareth Duncan, in Johannesburg

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