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South African rugby's top heavy house of cards
By Ben Smith
Another European season culminates in early May with the final four clubs, Irish powerhouse Leinster, the French heavyweights Toulouse and Bordeaux, and Northampton Saints contesting the semi-finals of the Champions Cup.
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This is the third edition since the inclusion of the South African teams, who so far, have been an afterthought on European’s grandest club stage.
In 2023 the Sharks and the Stormers respectively made the quarter-finals after surviving the round of 16. Both were belted back to the Republic with heavy defeats at the hands of Toulouse and Exeter.
In 2024 the Bulls were the lone quarter-finalists but suffered a 59-22 shellacking at the hands of Northampton after the club prioritised a push for the URC crown. The Stormers fared better and almost pipped La Rochelle in the round of 16, but fell by 22-21.
This year zero South African teams made it to the knockout rounds, the Sharks, Bulls and Stormers all bowed out with a 1-3 record after the pool stages. Travel concerns and second-string sides sent away has contributed massively to this situation. A self-imposed retreat from the competition and a white flag raised.
But the travel distances were always known from the outset and it goes both ways. If home playoff fixtures were secured, it becomes an advantage. Complaining about it does nothing.
The big four franchises have fared much better in the United Rugby Championship since going north. South Africa has hosted three straight finals in that time and claimed one title so far.
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This season the Bulls are the leading South African team and having completed an Irish sweep away, look like a genuine title threat. But putting all the chips into URC success at the expense of the Champions Cup hasn’t been a foolproof strategy.
The first final was an all-South African affair with the Stormers beating the Bulls, while in 2023 Munster beat the fancied Stormers and in 2024 Glasgow upset the Bulls.
Whilst there has been some tangible success in the URC league, it’s definitely not been of an all-conquering nature. There are a couple of title contending squads each year while in Europe they are a non-event.
Whether the Springboks back-to-back World Cups has led to a meaningful flow-on effect to success at other levels of high performance South African rugby is debatable.
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At U20 level South Africa has hosted the last two World Championships. That home field advantage counts, as typically South African teams have always proved stronger at home than abroad. In 2012 they won the title when they hosted, their only U20 world championship to date.
In 2023 they had an admirable finish, claiming third place over England after losing to Ireland in the semi-finals. In 2024 they finished seventh after losing to Argentina twice, once in the pool stages and again in the fifth-placed playoff.
The 2024 campaign is not the kind of result that you’d expect from a South African rep side on home soil.
So the question becomes, how long can Springbok success be maintained when the clubs are competitive, but not producing champions, and the U20 team isn’t successful? Can the best of overseas-contracted talent within Rassie’s systems prop them up forever?
The 2024 international season for the Springboks was the first real taste of dominance since 2009. They went 11 from 13 with just two losses, winning their first full-length Rugby Championship title.
It took six years to get here under Erasmus, and yes, that one year has more substance than both the 2019 and 2023 World Cup wins even if it doesn’t ‘mean more’ emotionally.
We know that after the 2019 win the Springboks won no tournaments and produced sub-par seasons all the way up to France 2023. This was the first year they showed up in a meaningful way against a full slate of legitimate opponents in the Test arena.
But for South African rugby, there isn’t anything below the Springboks that is a screaming success right now. After three years of competition in Europe, it looks more like a ‘top heavy’ house of cards from the outside.
If most of these double-World Cup veterans make it to 2027, it is going to be a very old squad. If it’s not them, then it’s going to be the players that are playing at home for the URC clubs now. They’ve folded up shop in Europe and choked in the last two URC finals.
The 2024 Springboks side finally put it together for a full year, but the house of cards is looking a little top heavy.
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Some ways to identify an authentic Ben Smith piece.
1. Factually inaccurate
2. Bok take down piece
3.obviously designed to get angry Bok supporters to sign up to this account so they can defend one of the worlds greatest teams.
4. He is yet to be interviewed live and very obviously doesn't exist.
5. Could easily have been invented by Rassie to unite Bok supporters - which is looking more and more likely. If so Rassie is a bloody genius.
Ok, then.
I feel I’ve signed my life away.
With a three year rolling average its not just about the club, but about the period of his career. E.g. you could look at the final two seasons at Bayern and the first year at City as one unit.
So its completely up to you whether you think we would get a more accurate picture with a three year or a five year rolling average.
LOL is this troll still employed by World Rugby.. He is the Biden of rugby bloggers.
Well in Pep’s case we could agree it on an average. 4 years at Barca, 3 years at Bayern and currently 9 at city. A rough average of 5 years but that’s longer than two of the clubs he managed. So I’d agree to 3 years if that works.
And to (try) and prove me point, I’ll just focus on his last 3 years at city until now?
Fact Check: “But the travel distances were always known from the outset and it goes both ways. If home playoff fixtures were secured, it becomes an advantage. Complaining about it does nothing.”
Article should be corrected to reflect EPCR rules:
EPCR Agreement: The European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR) has an agreement with the South African Rugby Union (SARU) stipulating that semi-final matches must be played in Europe. This arrangement was made when South African teams joined the competition.
+ No mention of the Sharks winning the Challenge Cup with this enforeced requirement for European based matches?
Main point he tries to make:
“But for South African rugby, there isn’t anything below the Springboks that is a screaming success right now”
BRO - we are World Champions for 2000 straight days - TODAY!
Where is YOUR success??
Tough point to argue…
Great article and plenty of valid points.
The Boks have another RWC and a SR title during this length of time so it’s not hurting their national game. Still seems to be how they judge success.
Their teams had been going well in the URC but tapered off a bit recently. The Bulls don’t really seem to have recovered from bombing that home final to Glasgow.
Obviously their teams are non-starters in the Euro comps which is sad. Just seems unworkable to have an non-European team compete regularly in Europe.
Although, Australia had a crack at one of the recent Eurovision song contests and I think they did well enough. It can be done.
Rare good comment from IkeaBoy.
You do know that SA teams were prevented by the terms of the EPCR competitions from having home ko games right? Or maybe not…
Looks like this guy got up this morning, in a Trump mood, and decided, again, South Africa is just terrible, and if he shouts it enough, it will be true.
Poorly researched piece that fails to take into account the critical point that it wasn’t possible for SA sides to earn a home ko fixture in the Champions Cup initially, as a result of the entry agreements. The format compounded this with ko rounds over sequential weeks, leaving the Bok teams scrambling logistically at incredibly short notice, but that will hopefully change pretty soon. So overall, the EPCR was stacked against them and as a result, was always going to be a slow burn for bok teams.
As for the URC, they’ve contested the last three finals and won one of them. Not too shabby at all from a standing start!
Haha sorry Ben but your beloved All Blacks is as cooked as your country!
No, they can’t. The finals have to be in the EU right?
What n CLOWN. He wants to write about the Boks while NZ teams are playing in “Super Rugby Pasific” & getting worse EVERY YEAR. It’s well watered down form the REAL SUPER RUGBY
Great article. Rassie is an incredible coach - and he has a great backroom staff behind him - but it isn’t possible to squeeze water from a stone.
He won back to back world cups with a pretty much unchanged group of players. He won’t be able to do that again. Much of the evidence is that the next generation of players aren’t very good, but even if they are, they haven’t been introduced to the test arena in time to rack up the necessary experience for 2027.
“Much of the evidence is that the next generation of players aren’t very good, but even if they are, they haven’t been introduced to the test arena in time to rack up the necessary experience for 2027.”
Not sure what evidence you are looking at. SFM was among the international breakout stars last year, while the likes of Nortje, Hanekom, Julius, Hooker, Wessels, and Steenekamp have all shown enough to suggest they will become mainstays on the international stage.
And you don’t need to have a lot of international caps to make an impact at a World Cup. The likes of Kolbe, Am, Mapimpi and Kwagga had a handful of caps when they played in the 2019 RWC and we all know how that turned out.
Like the article itself I think there’s a lot of wishful thinking happening with your statement. Rest of the world seems to think the only way to stop the Boks is for them to implode rather than other teams stepping up a level to catch them.
Ben Smith clutching at straws and having a desperate bout of wishful thinking that the Boks success won’t last….in reality the EU experience is giving all the SA teams massive exposure to different styles and players…Rassie pulls that all into a cohesive unit and his timing will be on point as always. The mere fact he blooded so many new players in the past year in preparation for the next 2 years leading to the RWC shows how healthy SA rugby is.
He hasn’t blooded very many players. The relatively large number capped last year was necessitated by the fact that he handed almost no new caps in the previous 4 seasons. Given how few of the new caps look likely to become regular starters, and given how many of SA’s core group of players are getting to the end of their careers, Rassie will need to pick just as many new players this year and next in order to retain squad depth.
I think everyone knows that the SA teams are prioritising the URC which is why they have been so bad in Europe. The champions cup group stage fixtures couldnt come at a worse time for SA franchises. They come hot on the heels of the Autumn internationals and in December and Jan when its coldest in Europe and as hot as it gets in SA. During this period SA franchises have to leap from Africa to Europe one week after the next. SA franchises sometimes have to hop from Europe back to Africa and then back to Europe in 3 to 4 weeks. Mandatory Springbok rest periods are opted into by franchises to keep the players fit as the Springbok players cannot play year-round and injuries take their toll. Fatigue also sets in for players who have played non-stop since March as there is no global calendar. They don’t get a chance to regroup again until the six nations. SA teams prioritise what’s in front of them. The Springboks are top heavy and SA franchises are in Transition between the new and older generation. There are lots of youngsters coming through but they need more time at the top level. Coaching is also in transition in SA Rugby with many coaches at a young age. The age group levels SA has underperformed but the talent is there. Its coming through at franchise level and these players are getting great experience playing in a variety of comps. I would hardly call it a house of cards though. Succession planning has already become a reality. At Prop the Springboks are already replacing the seniors, at Scrum Half the Springboks are building depth and at 10 they have loads of options now and at 4 and 5 the Boks have used a host of players in recent years. Rassie has a plan for 2027 and the best coaching staff at international level. He has some difficult questions in front of him when it comes to the squad but is finding answers at the moment. Yes its possible Springbok performances could dip this year and perhaps in 2026 however I would not bet against them continuing to dominate while in transition. There were similar doubts cast about them last year and they proved the doubters wrong.
Remind them paul Gymn won The world schools competition too🇿🇦🇰🇪