Defeats shouldn't mask SA's progress in Europe
Bold Champions Cup performances by the Stormers and Bulls should be viewed as a step in the right direction for South African rugby.
It feels wrong to be talking about progress after yet another round of Champions Cup playoff defeats.
And yet, there’s something to be said for the way the Stormers and Bulls coaches managed their squads in the buildup to the Round of 16, and for how the respective sets of players performed in hostile and challenging conditions.
The shift in approach and mindset so nearly culminated in groundbreaking wins for two of South Africa’s leading teams.
While the Stormers and Bulls failed to end the losing streak in Champions Cup playoff matches staged in Europe, they changed the narrative around South African teams on club rugby’s biggest
stage.
Were the performances good enough?
The results – a 29-28 win for Toulon and a 25-21 victory for Glasgow Warriors – suggest not.
But consider how different the conversation has been this week, compared with the existential lament that has followed previously botched European campaigns.
Right now, fans and critics are demanding to know why Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu didn’t drop back into the pocket for the drop-goal option in the latter stages of the game in Toulon.
Why didn’t the Stormers didn’t shift the ball to the edge to expose a Toulon team that had been reduced to 13 men?
Why did they persist with the pick-and-go option, knowing that there was a good chance of being held up in-goal?
Did the referee Christophe Ridley get that final call on Toulon’s tryline right?
Ultimately, should the Stormers have put themselves in that position, where the referee and the TMO would have the final say on whether they won or lost the game?
These are important questions that a frustrated Stormers collective will wrestle with in the coming months.
But again, there’s something to be said for the fact that they went to France and gave it a crack.
The same applies to the Bulls, who were written off before their recent visit to Glasgow.
Nobody gave them a chance against a Warriors side that has dominated the United Rugby Championship and claimed a number of notable Champions Cup scalps in recent months.
Nevertheless, a full-strength Bulls side travelled to Scotland with the belief that they could prevail, and in the end, it was their execution rather than ability that cost them at key moments.
Again, there is an important distinction to be made here.
In the past, critics have slammed South African teams for taking weakened squads to Europe, and for disrespecting the Champions Cup.
Some have called for the expulsion of the South Africa teams, following a string of one-sided – and largely inevitable – results.
Fast forward to the present, where the conversation in the wake of a Champions Cup playoff defeat is very different.
Nobody can argue that the Stormers and Bulls travelled to Europe with the intent to win, and that for the better part of 80 minutes, they had victory in their sights.
Now critics are talking about poor option-taking and finishing at key moments.
Fans are lamenting a couple of refereeing decisions in a tight finish.
There’s a big difference between falling short of the finish line and struggling to stay in the race.
Some will say that a loss is a loss, but the Stormers and Bulls will have learned a great deal from their recent matches in Europe.
The same could not be said for the teams that sent predominantly young squads to Europe in previous seasons, and went on to lose by 40 or 50 points.
Whisper it, but the days of South African teams waving the white flag before kickoff or going through the motions appear to be over.
That’s not to say there is no room for improvement. Mistakes were certainly made.
While it’s been pleasing to see a change in attitude towards the playoffs, most of the South African teams would do well to revise their approach to the Champions Cup pool phase in the coming season.
The Stormers have been the best South African team on show this season, and not just because of their URC and Champions Cup results.
Coach John Dobson has backed his wider squad over the course of the season, and for the most part, has managed to strike the right balance between youth and experience.
The Stormers won three of their four Champions Cup pool matches – a run that included a rare win against Bayonne in France.
Where they got it wrong, however, was in the away match against Harlequins. The team selected for that assignment lacked balance as well as belief, and were duly hammered 10-61.
That result proved costly, and forced the Stormers to travel overseas for the playoffs.
Away victories are rare in the Champions Cup, while overseas wins are like hen’s teeth, especially in the playoffs.
The Stormers’ depth will be bolstered in the coming months, when the likes of Wilco Louw and Siya Kolisi join the squad ahead of the 2026/27 season.
While the season structure and the travel demands remain significant challenges for South Africa’s teams, the Stormers should be well-equipped to compete across the two competitions.
The Bulls have taken some time to settle under new coach Johan Ackermann, and have had some luck in the recent Champions Cup campaign.
Despite losing their first three pool matches – two of those at home – they qualified for the playoffs on the back of a gritty win against Pau in France.
When Ackermann selected a full-strength side for the recent playoff against Glasgow, it felt like a statement.
In the grand scheme of things, it was a gamble.
Some might say the Bulls should be focusing on their URC campaign, as they have work to do if they’re going to qualify for the quarterfinals (they’re currently eighth in the tournament standings).
With that in mind, Ackermann may have saved his strongest side for the next set of away fixtures against the Dragons and Scarlets.
Instead, he opted to have a crack at winning the Champions Cup Round of 16 match in Scotland.
While the Bulls didn’t win in Glasgow, they certainly made a statement about their potential.
It’s a performance that may shape future European campaigns and may give them confidence ahead of a possible visit to the north in the upcoming URC playoffs.
Regardless of what transpires in the final stages of the URC, Ackermann will have much to address regarding the make-up of his squad in the 2026/27 season.
Like the Stormers, the Bulls should be aiming to compete in both the URC and the Champions Cup going forward.
The Sharks have been in transition, with JP Pietersen taking the head coaching reins this past December. They too have much to ponder ahead of next season, in terms of squad management and results.
There are many within South African rugby circles who believe that the leading teams will never be a force in the Champions Cup until the season is restructured to mitigate the player-welfare and travel challenges.
But the recent performances showed that the likes of the Stormers and Bulls aren’t too far away from challenging some of the top European teams.
It may be some time yet before they’re part of the Champions Cup title conversation, but in light of recent showings, they will have every reason to believe that an overseas win is attainable in the near future.
