Cardiff's South African coach a glimmer of hope for Welsh region

Despite their quarterfinal exit, Cardiff’s resurgence under South African coach Corniel van Zyl has given the Welsh region renewed hope for the future.

Cardiff’s United Rugby Championship campaign may have ended in the quarterfinals, but the 2025/26 season will be remembered as a significant step forward for a club that has endured its fair share of challenges in recent years.

*READ: Dobson flags major Stormers concern 

Amid the financial uncertainty that has gripped Welsh rugby, Cardiff emerged as one of the competition’s surprise packages, securing a place in the URC play-offs for the first time and laying the foundations for a brighter future under South African coach Corniel van Zyl.

They booked a spot in the quarterfinals with a memorable 22-16 victory over the Stormers in Round 18 at Arms Park, finishing sixth on the league table.

With the Stormers concluding in third place, the two teams met again in the quarterfinals, but this time the South Africans walked away with a 44-21 victory and a spot in the semifinals.

While Cardiff’s season ended in defeat, Van Zyl was quick to focus on the progress his side has made.

“We’re immensely proud of what the boys have produced this season,” Van Zyl told reporters in Cape Town after the defeat to the Stormers.

“Nobody would have given us a chance before the first game, and we found a way to creep in and fight for the jersey, which is ultimately what we want to do.

“We want to grow every game, and I think there were a few lessons learned [on Saturday].

“But it comes down to how you perform on the pitch.

“It doesn’t matter what happens off the pitch. There have been a few things that happened that can potentially be used as an excuse. But we tend not to use them as excuses and just focus on our performance on the pitch.”

The 47-year-old’s impact has been significant.

In April, he signed a long-term contract with the region in April, stepping up following the departure of Matt Sherratt to Wales.

He enjoyed an illustrious playing career, making more than 150 appearances for Benetton and qualifying through residency to represent Italy.

Since retiring in 2015, Van Zyl has amassed a wealth of coaching experience, with stints as forwards coach at the Free State Cheetahs, London Irish and Ealing Trailfinders.

His connection with Cardiff was immediate.

“Since I stepped into Cardiff for the first time, I just felt a different sense of belonging, and it’s made it very easy,” Van Zyl stated.

“There’s a lot of similarities to the culture we have here in South Africa.

“People are humble, people work hard and those are a few things that I love.”

Van Zyl’s charges showed plenty of character during the quarterfinal defeat. The visitors had a 7-0 lead, but then were trailing 7-21, before fighting back to reduce the deficit to just five points during the second half.

Ultimately, the Stormers’ dominance at scrum time, coupled with two costly yellow cards, swung the contest decisively in favour of the hosts.

“It was just tough to take, definitely,” Van Zyl admitted.

“Obviously, before the game, we knew the scrum and maul were going to be a big part of it and they came out on top.”

While pleased with his team’s progress, Van Zyl said Cardiff must work on a few areas of they want to become genuine contenders.

“If you look at the results we had at home this year, they were actually very positive.

“But for us to become better in the future, we need to find ways to win away from home.

“Consistency is something we talk about, and when players are put in a different environment, how can they still produce the same performances as they do at home?

“Adjusting during a game is another massive one. The Stormers put us under pressure with their line speed and we didn’t really expect it.

“And, obviously, a simple one is also a better set-piece.”

For a Cardiff side that exceeded expectations and earned respect across the URC, the challenge now is turning progress into consistency.

If this season is anything to go by, Van Zyl has already given the Welsh region something it has been searching for – belief.