So why are you making a fuss of the Shield? The question came from a fellow rugby writer who didn’t get the extra focus placed on this weekend’s Vodacom United Rugby Championship derby in Durban, which has the South African conference trophy on the line.
In short, the answer could be “Why not?” There’s certainly no harm done to the competition to hype up the secondary competition within the competition. And while the coaches may choose when they take it seriously or not, they do actually care.
It’s why the competition exists and even though there have been some massive crowds at derby games this season, most notably Cape Town, the franchise level of the sport in this country does need selling. And if you were to ask me who won the conferences in those years you’d probably draw a blank on most years except for the one season Jake was coaching the Sharks, 2014. The Durbanites did win it that year and it is remembered because it was their only conference win.
That misgiving aside, there is reason to want the Shield to become something people make more of a fuss of. For the simple reason that when it comes to local franchise/provincial rugby, there is no other way of determining the best South African team.The Currie Cup no longer does that and hasn’t done so since the years when Super Rugby was the Super 12, and completed by the end of May.
The 12-month season is the biggest stumbling block to the Bok quest to continue winning World Cups, as evidenced by the injury crisis being experienced by all local franchises that have Boks on their books.
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