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Southern Kings 2013 Super Rugby debut
| DATE: 21 February 2012 |
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| BY: Sias Du Plessis |
The Southern Kings are set for their Super Rugby debut – this time it will be in 2013, but at whose expense? The Kings need help to make an impact at Super Rugby level.
It has been confirmed that the Southern Kings will play in the 2013 Super Rugby competition. The Eastern Cape outfit will finally get their opportunity to play some of the toughest rugby in the world against some of the most brutal players that the game has produced. Yes, it will be a baptism of fire, but if you want to pee with the big dogs, be prepared to wander into the long grass and lift your leg high. But to get to that tall grass, you need a bit of grunt and some extra beef to make you big and strong.
The talk doing the rounds is that the lowest ranked team will fall away from the competition and be replaced by the Kings, but then how do they get an opportunity to get back into the money-spinner that is Super Rugby? The other option that has been doing the rounds on popular sports websites is that the Cheetahs and Lions merge to form the Cats once again, that makes sense right?
The Lions have been shockingly bad in Super Rugby and the Cheetahs not much better, so join the teams, play some games in Bloem and the other half in Johannesburg and the space is created for the Kings. The latest suggestion is to join the Lions and Bulls and former a Gauteng side with all the games at the Soweto Stadium, so the “Bullish Lions” will then possess a powerful line up that will challenge the best in the Southern hemisphere. Easier said than done.
Saru has to sit down and discuss the situation further and will have to be clever as to not step on toes, but they could ask Sanzar to make it 16, and then everyone gets a slice of the pie. It is an interesting situation and a tough call to make. Personally, I am happy for the Kings and wish them the best, but don’t expect many “Ws” just yet, because to become rugby royalty, you have to prove you are the King of the Southern hemisphere castle, not just the token jester who slipped into the castle via the back door.
