SuperWrap Week 1, 2016:
For some it was fear and trepidation and for others just nervous excitement, but we all felt something in the pits of our stomachs as Ihaia West kicked Super Rugby off into the great unknown on Friday.
We were all holding our breaths as we heard the thump of leather boot on pigskin. What was about to happen to this competition we’ve grown to love so much these past 20 years?
Everything that could have changed did. We had strange new countries involved, we had a format that even an actuary struggles to understand and a bonus-point system borrowed from a Gauloises-puffing, shoulder-shrugging Frenchman.
Just as that West kick that was hanging like an ominous moon in the Auckland sky, everything about the tournament was up in the air.
Hanging, hanging, hanging… and then BANG! The Blues and the Highlanders smashed into each other, kicking up a dust storm that 720 minutes and a whopping 53 tries later is only starting to settle down now.
So here we are: hearts still racing, ears still ringing, left with the burning question “what in the world just happened?”
Now there are many answers to that question, but none will be as bumptious as the one you’re about to read. Yes, the SuperWrap is back. Slightly trimmed down, a little more focused, but still as frank as `Ol Blue Eyes himself.
So here’s your answer. Your heart races and your ears ring because you just saw what we’ve been seeing at this time of year for the last two decades. The greatest show on earth has just kicked off.
Forget the pessimistic nay-saying that hallmarked the build-up, once the action started it was business as usual. What we saw on the field was the exact same fast-paced, high-intensity, crowd-pleasing rugby that has earned this tournament the reputation of being the toughest provincial competition in the world.
Strange new additions? The Jaguares and the Sunwolves did not dilute the Super broth in any way. Both teams competed wonderfully well on debut and their games were some of the most entertaining of the round. All our new friends did was to add some interesting new tastes to an already delicious dish.
Strange new format? What does that matter if you have a fixtures list in front of you? Any format that throws up potential humdingers like Crusaders/Blues, Brumbies/Waratahs or Sharks/Jaguares in only its second week does not need understanding, only applause.
The new bonus-point system? It worked like a charm. Now that teams are required to score three or more tries than the opposition in order to gain that one extra log-point, matches retain their intensity far more than in the past. For teams like the Brumbies, the Lions and the Sharks having comfortable leads this past weekend was not enough. They had to continue working for tries until the final whistle. Previously you’d score your needed four and then coast home.
Super Rugby’s time-honoured truths remained as true ever. Dominating forward packs, like those of the Brumbies and the Stormers, went almost all the way in ensuring victories. No amount of fiddling with law interpretations will change that.
No matter how much skill you had with ball in hand, poor defence pretty much guaranteed you’d lose (the Cheetahs missed an eye-popping 45 tackles while the Bulls were grasping thin air three times as often as their opponents).
It was Super Rugby as we’ve always known it; an opening round as good as anything that has come before.
Ok, so there were some low-skill, dreary snooze-fests on display too, but Australian derbies has always been part and parcel of the tournament. They are a necessary evil, but we all need some time on a Saturday to shop for braai wood and beer.
And yes, there are some teams that are on a hiding to nothing this year. In their defence, the Kings had a pre-season shorter than tweede-pouse, while the Bulls are so young that they were heard saying “Jammer Oom!” every time they managed to actually tackle a Stormer.
On the whole, however, it seems any fears were unfounded.
Super Rugby in 2016 is not as condensed as Super 12 and not as fair as Super 14, but we still have a quality product to enjoy every weekend for the next seven months.
Ihaia West kicked us off into the great unknown on Friday. We’ve probably not landed as yet, but as far as I can see we’re all doing just fine.
Let’s have a look at what the rest of the SuperWrap team was able to dig up for us this week.
Bok Barometer for week 1:
(The side is picked purely on the performances of the current week)
15. Willie Le Roux (Sharks), 14. Sergeal Petersen (Cheetahs), 13. Francois Venter (Cheetahs), 12. Juan de Jongh (Stormers), 11. Courtnal Skosan (Lions), 10. Robert du Preez (Stormers), 9. Faf de Klerk (Lions), 8. Warren Whiteley (Lions), 7. Schalk Burger (Stormers), 6. Jaco Kriel (Lions), 5. Pieter-Steph du Toit (Stormers),4. Eben Etzebeth (Stormers), 3. Vincent Koch (Stormers), 2. Malcolm Marx (Lions), 1. JC Janse van Rensburg (Stormers).
Try of the week:
We were spoilt for choice this week and quite a few efforts came close to winning our first award of the year. Martin Landajo, especially, was unlucky to miss out after that spectacular second try of his against the Cheetahs. Our winner, however, came from the weekend’s first match, where the young Blake Gibson announced himself at this level with this barn-storming run (note: video can be viewed in DStv territories only):
This video is not available in your region
Best of twitter:
