Super Rugby for the 2016 season is not over yet as there is one Round remaining before the end of the regular season and the start of the play-offs. That season was full of surprises as the competition is now contested with 18 franchises and four different conferences.
Following the end of the 2015 World Cup, the Super Rugby governing body (SANZAR) said that they were looking for expansion. In 2015, there were 15 franchises playing in the competition with Melbourne Rebels, the last franchise to have joined a few seasons ago.
In 2016, there were three more franchises coming with a 6th franchise in South Africa which had already played in Super Rugby before : Southern Kings. The other two franchises are coming from countries which are on the rise and it is Japan and Argentina.
The Sunwolves are coming from Japan and are coached by former Hurricanes manager Mark Hammett. Besides, there are the Jaguares who earned their place in Super Rugby after a magnificient World Cup campaign from Argentina which reached the semi-finals.
Moreover, the new format is very complicated as four conferences are gathered to make two different groups. This season, 8 franchises will qualify for the play-offs and four wildcards will be distributed. Many improvements have to be made but it really gives hope.
Super Rugby for the next season will start in February, 2017. That would be interesting to talk about the future for the 18 franchises playing in the competition. They all have the opportunity to improve and chase the Super Rugby title if they play their running game.
1. New Zealand : Super Rugby benchmark
Franchises from New Zealand clearly are the benchmark in Super Rugby as the New Zealand conference is the closest in Super Rugby every season. Also, the franchises from New Zealand always finish the season with the most points and with the best statistics.
First, the Chiefs have no reasons to worry because their players poll is very talented. The franchise from Hamilton relies on their All Blacks players and they trust themselves. Chiefs play the game very quickly and the players are a threat on the field all game long.
The Crusaders can be confident with a bright future. Legends such as Richie McCaw and Dan Carter left the franchise but leaders like Sam Whitelock and Kieran Read drive the team well. The Crusaders’ gameplan is very expansive and players can show their skills.
Defending Champions in 2016, the Highlanders are built on strong foundations. They are perfectly organised in defence and are very good in the counter-attack. The Highlanders take almost all their opportunities in the games and that is what makes them dangerous.
Besides, the Hurricanes are earning some respect as they qualified for the play-offs after the sad end of the 2015 Super Rugby campaign. Coach Chris Boyd is the man for the job and the academy is full of talents such as second-rowers Vaea Fifita and Michael Fatialofa.
Finally, the Auckland Blues are also on the rise with Tana Umaga asking for consistency. That franchise has got the potential to go far in the competition but they need to find quickly how to back their performances each weekend to climb in the Super Rugby table.
Conclusion : The New Zealand Rugby Union (NZRU) will be pleased with their franchises performances through the years. They remain the most impressive team and their success is based on their great skills and an attractive model where commitment is the first key.
2. Australia : End of a successful era ?!
This 2016 Super Rugby season will ask questions to Australia rugby. The franchises are not performing and talented players such as Matt Toomua have decided to leave the country to play overseas. The pride for wearing Wallabies jersey does not seem to matter anymore.
It is very tough to explain what happened to the Brumbies. Stephen Larkham is struggling to find the same level of excellence than last season. The off-field problems and some controversies around many players did not help the atmosphere in the training camps.
Michael Cheika coaching now Australia, Daryl Gibson is managing the Waratahs. Keeping a similar gameplan, their attacking game remains very good. However, the leaders (Will Skelton, Wycliff Palu, Nick Phipps) make too many mistakes to win the big encounters.
Then, Melbourne Rebels was considered as the franchise with the most potential. Their last game against the Crusaders at Christchurch, conceding 85 points to the Crusaders, was unacceptable. Tony McGahan has got a lot of work to do to give the confidence back.
Queensland Reds started poorly their season and their manager Richard Graham was sacked. Reds have to raise a similar challenge to the Blues : finding the consistency. They beat Highlanders but also conceded 50 points against the Chiefs in a disappointing game.
With the Western Force, there is some work to do because that franchise has to improve their attacking game. Their back-three with Dane Haylett-Petty and Luke Morahan is promising but they need a strong forwards pack and play a more expansive rugby game.
Conclusion : Following the Waratahs defeat against the Hurricanes, Cory Jane stated that the Super Rugby form would not matter for Rugby Championship. After a 3-0 series defeat against England in June, Australia is in a difficult situation and has to find the solutions.
3. South Africa : The deserved rising of the Lions
Named manager of the national team, Allister Coetzee mostly picked Lions players in June. That is deserved given the incredible rugby that they are playing. Credit has to go to Johan Ackermann and Jaco Kriel along with Faf de Klerk, Elton Jantjies and Ruan Combrinck, too.
The Stormers are probably the franchise which is still relying too much on the physicality. Promising players like Damian de Allende and Siya Kolisi made good performances but the Stormers have to use their backline if they want to win Super Rugby competition one day.
Despite some inconsistency during the season, the Sharks are not playing a bad rugby game. The manager Gary Gold has improved the defence and the scrum. However, there are too many inaccuracies in their game and they have to correct that for the next games.
Bulls are remaining one of the big threats in South Africa. Loftus Versfeld is a strong venue to come and win with a fantastic crowd. Fullback Jesse Kriel provides attacking threat with hooker and skipper Adriaan Strauss trying to keep the discipline in the squad on the field.
It is obvious that there is a lot of potential in a franchise like the Cheetahs. Unfortunately, the players are not trusting the system. The Springboks second-rower Lood de Jager is the last player to leave the franchise to play for the Bulls in the next Super Rugby campaigns.
Coming back in Super Rugby, the Southern Kings are still in building. Many players have been included in the Springboks ‘A’ so there is the future in this franchise. Deon Davids, who is coaching the team, has to improve the defence as the attack is pretty efficient.
Conclusion : South Africa franchises are making that transition from a physical rugby to a more attacking and expansive game. The Stormers do not want to make the transition and it could cost them at some point when games against New Zealand franchises will come.
4. Argentina and Japan : Learning in Super Rugby
For their first season in Super Rugby, the Jaguares have disappointed as expectations were huge after the Argentina Triumph at the World Cup. In 2016, the Jaguares only recorded three wins against the Cheetahs, the Southern Kings and the Bulls, which is not enough.
There is the feeling that the franchise does no exactly know how to play the game. Sometimes, they tried to play a spectacular game like the Chiefs game. Sometimes, they chose to calm things down a bit like the Highlanders game and it never really pays at all.
Honestly, there is no worries to have for the Jaguares franchise. They are still learning how to play in the competition and how to get those close wins. The players from Argentina are talented and when they will have corrected their mistakes, they will be just unstoppable.
About the Sunwolves, that first season was much better than expected. The franchise from Tokyo won only one game against the Jaguares but they got a draw against the Stormers and were far from ridiculous against the Cheetahs and the Bulls with close encounters.
Mark Hammett is coaching the franchise with that desire to succeed and the work has to be made on defence. The attack has been very good for the Sunwolves and they often make clever offloads. The key for them is finding their great game phases after phases of play.
The Sunwolves deserved a franchise in Super Rugby after Japan’s win at the 2015 World Cup against South Africa. The country will host the World Cup in 2019 and the Japanese Championship, the Top League, is attracting the best players of the world so there is hope.
Conclusion : The Jaguares and the Sunwolves are playing their first Super Rugby season so they are learning how to play the game. Nevertheless, they have talented squads and their managers just need to find the momentum for the next Super Rugby campaign in 2017.
Conclusion :
The Super Rugby competition in 2017 will be very interesting for all the 18 franchises as it is not decided yet if there will be further expansions. Certainly, there is a need for stabiliy and the competition should stay with the same number of franchises for the next seasons.
Based on the current Super Rugby campaign, New Zealand remains the benchmark in Super Rugby with Chiefs, Crusaders, Hurricanes and Highlanders maintaining their standards. The Auckland Blues are not too far way and will be a threat in the coming years.
In Australia, the fans have all the reasons to be worried. The Brumbies and the Waratahs, the two biggest franchises of the country, are struggling badly. The Rebels and the Reds did not find the consistency yet while the Western Force has to find an attacking game.
With South Africa, there is the desire to play the game. The Lions are the deserved leaders of the Super Rugby in 2016. The Stormers and the Sharks, along with the Bulls stay competitive. The Cheetahs and the Southern Kings have to retain their very best players.
The new franchises from Argentina and Japan have to trust themselves. The Jaguares have got the potential and their players are skillful. The Sunwolves have got a passionate crowd and a good coaching staff. These two teams have to target more wins in the future, now.
Finally, with Chiefs and the Crusaders playing a Super Rugby game in Suva, Fiji, many fans agreed with the introduction of a franchise from the Pacific Islands in Super Rugby. As it stands, it would be possible if the Pacific Islands get their infrastructures right very soon.
That Super Rugby season in 2017 will be surely exciting as it is always a new but the same beginning for the franchises in this quest of the Super Rugby Title. The 2016 Super Rugby season is not over yet and 8 franchises will fight in the play-offs for the Eternal Glory.
All the best ! Make Rugby proud !
Max.
Rugby, Only Rugby ! 