South Africa’s three Investec Champions Cup entrants must shift mindset and selection strategy if they want to compete with Europe’s elite, writes MARK KEOHANE.
Writing for the Sunday Times, Keohane says South Africa’s participation in the tournament is a privilege earned, not a box ticked – but unless the Vodacom Bulls, Sharks and Stormers change their approach, they risk remaining passengers instead of challengers.
The Champions Cup is a competition unlike any other, which Keohane describes as “the best of the best,” where every fixture is knockout-intensity and where “there is nothing in world club rugby that compares.”
With eight teams each from France’s Top 14, the English Premiership and the Vodacom URC, depth is essential and excuses are irrelevant.
Keohane spent time at the official launch in London and interviewed players from the clubs set to face South Africa’s trio. The reverence for the competition, he says, was unmistakable.
Saracens and England hooker Jamie George told him: “It is the one we all want to win,” calling the Champions Cup title the “star every club player in Europe chases each season.”
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But South African teams have yet to fully grasp that magnitude. Their struggle to balance URC commitments with Champions Cup demands has been as much mental as physical.
“Our teams have battled,” Keohane writes, not only with squad depth but with a mindset that has not fully appreciated what it means to compete among Europe’s elite.
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The Bulls host reigning champions Bordeaux in Pretoria on Saturday, a fixture that should draw a full Loftus crowd but likely won’t. South Africans, Keohane argues, still underestimate the privilege – and the opportunity – of these matchdays.
If the Bulls, Sharks and Stormers want to be more than qualifiers, they must shift their approach, embrace the standard and aim for stars of their own.
Photo: Alex Davidson/Getty Images
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