2013 a breakthrough year for the Cheetahs?

As always will their squad have the depth. Injuries are as always crucial and more so in the case of the cheetahs

Ex Supersport

There may not have been any trophies in their cabinet at the end of the year, but for everyone’s favourite second team – the Toyota Cheetahs – 2013 will be remembered as a resounding success.

For once they confirmed their promise and were a factor in Vodacom Super Rugby. For once they made other teams cringe at the thought of countering their attack and for once they broke the ceiling and qualified for the playoff rounds of the Southern Hemisphere tournament.

Sure, the ceiling was set low, but after almost 20 years of trying, the Cheetahs finally found a formula that would bring them more success than failure.

They found a way of crafting two provincial rivals into one Super Rugby team, and played a brand of rugby that, while not always ending up on the winning side, was a pleasure to watch.

The season saw their best ever overseas leg, winning three of their four games, and while things didn’t always work out against some of their South African rivals, they were rewarded by Bok coach Heyneke Meyer in his first squad for the incoming internationals.

Considering that at the end of 2012 the Cheetahs played in the Promotion-Relegation match for Currie Cup survival, it shows just how well things went for them in Super Rugby and in making the playoffs of both major competitions, they did significantly better than 2012.

Their 15-13 loss to the Brumbies in Canberra, a game where the Cheetahs scored twice and successfully kept the Brumbies from crossing their line, showed just how close they were to the top teams and had they won that, they would have given themselves a chance against the Bulls at Loftus in a semi.

But 'what-ifs' and 'could-have-beens' are perhaps part of their downfall as a franchise. Year after year the Cheetahs play a great brand of rugby, but fail to make an impression when cups are handed out.

This year their defensive structures were remarkably better – thanks to some help from the Bok management – and it made a huge difference to their attack as well.

At home their victories over the Stormers and Reds in Bloemfontein were a highlight. And with momentum on their side, injuries evaded them as well with no less than 10 players playing in all 17 games in the season.

And while the likes of Adriaan Strauss, Coenie Oosthuizen, Piet van Zyl and Lourens Adriaanse all received their Bok colours and were regularly in the Bok squad, others such as Lappies Labuschagne and Robert Ebersohn also caught the selectors' eye.

Looking forward, the Cheetahs will have more control of their franchise and working together with Griquas will be a lot easier with Hawies Fourie as the new coach in Kimberley.

The synergy will benefit the team, who need to take the next step forward if they are to build on all their impressive momentum of 2013.

The Currie Cup was a different story for both the Cheetahs and Griquas. Both flattered to deceive and scored good wins at stages, but were never able to be consistent enough to challenge for the trophy.

Griquas opened their Currie Cup campaign with a win over the eventual champions, the Sharks, but then slid slowly backwards as they were beset by injuries – especially at lock.

The Cheetahs did enough to make the semis, but even though they scored three tries against the Sharks, the men from Bloemfontein didn’t have that little bit extra to get them into the final.

Depth remains a problem for both provinces and, with Griquas relegated at the time of writing, filling those voids may be a problem.

SEASON IN A NUTSHELL

CHEETAHS Super Rugby - sixth (lost in playoff to Brumbies) 
Currie Cup – lost semifinal to Sharks, finished fourth on the log (previous year sixth and had to survive playoff) 
Man of the Super Rugby season: Adriaan Strauss
Man of the Currie Cup season: Lood de Jager
Most valuable player all-round: Willie le Roux
Quo Vadis: Can they improve or was the 2013 Super Rugby season a once off? 
Most exciting new find: Lappies Labuschagne
Most promising young player: Lood de Jager

GRIQUAS

Currie Cup – sixth (lost to Pumas in playoff and were relegated) 
Man of the Currie Cup season: Marnus Schoeman
Most valuable player all-round: Marnus Schoeman
Most exciting new find: Lourens Adriaanse
Most promising young player: Howard Mnisi

 The Cheetahs did very well - they were the only SA team that beat all the Australian sides they met in the round robin phase of Super 15 this year and was beaten by a whisker by the Brumbies in the play-offs. 

I think there only problem is they have a limited squad and player exhaustion played a role later in the season.

I think they are right on the dot with their top selection of players.    Adriaan Strauss, Willie le Roux, Lood de Jager and Lappies Labuschagne  were top players in Super 15 and in the CC.  The latter two are Springbok material and a hell of a lot better than some of the player at present in the Springbok team.

Labuschagne was rated at the best loosie of all teams in Super 15 this year and he should have been in the team ahead of Sloth Alberts.  In any other international team he would have been - but we have Sloth and Meyer keeps the fat clumsy  bugger in the team.