There was a quote attributed to former England great Lawrence Dallaglio this past weekend on social media that caught my eye.
The quote - said on a television broadcast in the UK in the aftermath of the hammering of the Stormers at the hands of Harlequins - perhaps summed up some of the views coming from up north at South African sides in the Investec Champions’ Cup.
“South Africans don’t seem as motivated to play for their club sides in Europe as they seem to do when they play for the Springboks,” Dallaglio was purported to have said, and it was some serious food for thought.
Because after another horror weekend for the three South African sides in the competition, and given the success of the Springboks over the past few years, you can understand the disconnect coming from Europe on the way our sides play.
NO MARKETING
Put aside the fact that for local games the URC sides do virtually no marketing of the games and then wonder why paltry crowds turn up for teams like Bordeaux and Saracens when they come to town, it isn’t just a case that our teams depth is not at the level of some of the superclubs up north.
Yes, it must be said that the budgets of the French sides are massive in comparison to what South African teams contract their squads at, but that is no excuse for some of the performances we have seen of late.
Firstly, let's handle the elephant in the room and the basis of some of the European complaints. There is a sense that South African teams don’t take the competition seriously. They send second-string teams abroad that get walloped and do the brand no good. The image of Springbok rugby as a powerful force is the stark opposite of what teams think of South African franchises when they head north to England or France.
But managing resources in a overly long season without a proper pre-season for clubs is an issue. And northern teams - especially those in France - tend to send second string sides for away games on a regular basis. The way the competition format works is that if you can win your home games, and put up a good show in the away games then you should be good to qualify for the playoffs.
SECOND STRING OUTFITS COMMON
Only the top sides - those who seriously want to win the competition - tend to send full strength teams abroad - as Bordeaux-Begles did to Loftus in December, for instance.
But that may all be true, but there is still a disconnect between the way South African franchises face their European opposition away from home.
The fight just doesn’t seem to be there. While Saracens sent a second string side to Durban and La Rochelle did the same to Gqeberha in December and ultimately lost to the Sharks and Stormers respectively, they never embarrassed themselves. In fact they put up a fighting performance that any coach would be proud of.
Compare that to the Stormers second stringers against Quins this past Sunday, or the Bulls against Northampton in December and there is a stark difference.
The South African teams seem outclassed, and seem to drop their heads faster, giving the runaway scorelines that do our rugby no good.
You can be outclassed but put in a gritty performance. You can go down fighting. The Sharks’ loss in Toulouse in December was a perfect example of this.
What does it matter when you are going to lose anyway, some may say? But it does. It paints a picture of a side not wanting to compete, of a side who has lost the game before they get on the plain. And to put it plainly, it is simply not the picture of South African rugby you want out there.
Even in the darkest times of Springbok and Super Rugby, the backs-against-the-wall performances gave fans hope.
NO SECOND TIER COMPETITION
Perhaps it is a consequence of not having a second tier competition like the old Vodacom Cup or SuperSport Challenge to keep those fringe players fit and motivated. Perhaps our teams simply aren’t that good in depth and it is what it is.
But collectively it would be good to see a lot more fight out of the so-called “Second string” teams than we are seeing now. Not only would the odd bonus point be good for the campaign, but those games are an opportunity for players to stake a claim.
In some cases, as in the Sharks’ loss to Sale this past weekend, it seemed the team selection had pre-determined the outcome before the game took place. Sale were there for the taking, but the Sharks obsession with a spat over calling Sale Tuna, and then selecting a weakened team, made their task impossible. And showed how some teams have pre-determined the outcome a long time before kickoff.
The Champions Cup is possibly the toughest club rugby competition in the world, but you wouldn’t say so from the viewpoint of the franchises, who tend to look at it as an irritation, rather than an opportunity.
Other than this weekend’s Stormers result, which coach John Dobson did admit was embarrassing and should be seen as a blip in an otherwise excellent season, our franchises can do a lot better than what they’re currently putting on the field.
But then they would have to pursue that success, and not just look for survival. And until that changes, we will hear the complaining from up north a lot more.
And people like Dallaglio may be proven right time and again.