The Golden Lions recorded the most emphatic Currie Cup final victory since 1980 when they beat The Sharks, champions in 2010, by 42-16 at Coca-Cola Park in Johannesburg on Saturday.
It was a significant triumph, as it was the Golden Lions’ first outright Currie Cup final victory on home soil since 1950 and their first title since 1999 after losing in the finals of 2002 and 2007.
The winning margin of 26 points is higher than the two biggest Currie Cup finals victories of the last decade, both recorded by the Blue Bulls when they beat the Golden Lions in 2006 (31-7) and The Sharks in 2003 (40-19).
The only bigger win in an Currie Cup final than yesterday’s, came in 1980 when the Blue Bulls, then still called Northern Transvaal, beat Western Province by 39-9.
The Golden Lions have been the pace-setters all season and built their victory in the final on a superb defensive performance, while they also used their attacking opportunities better than The Sharks, outscoring the visitors by three tries to one.
Golden Lions flyhalf Elton Jantjies contributed 24 points and was named Man of the Match, while Jaco Taute scored a try and added a crucial long-range penalty goal. Michael Killian and Patric Cilliers scored the home team’s two other tries.
Jantjies’ points tally is just two fewer than the record of 26 set by Derick Hougaard in 2002, while the Lions flyhalf’s fellow SA U20 team-mate from last year, Patrick Lambie, contributed 25 points in last year’s final for The Sharks, when they defeated Western Province by 30-10 in Durban.
For The Sharks, Willem Alberts crossed for a try that was converted by Frederic Michalak, who also added three penalty goals.
John Mitchell, coach of the Golden Lions, lauded his team’s calmness under pressure as one of the reasons for their great victory. Late in the first half Springbok prop CJ van der Linde was sin-binned for dangerous play, but the Lions did not concede a single point while they were playing with only 14 men.
“When we were down to 14 men, we remained calm and the guys didn’t drop in their performance. This team also kept their composure after the Sharks’ try, which I thought was a dubious decision. I’m very proud of how the team handled those incidents very well as we adapted to the situation,” said Mitchell.
“These past few weeks have been phenomenal. The fact that we played in front of a packed Coca-Cola Park showed how well the guys were playing, and the support has been great.
“People assumed I was crazy to take the job as Lions coach, but I love a challenge and my dream was to restore the pride that was once here in Johannesburg. I know it’s been a frustrating number of years for all Lions fans, who probably had to turn the telly upside down to see their team on top of the log.
“The results weren’t going the team’s way and that hurts because supporters have an emotional connection to their team. I’m very happy with what has been achieved over the last 16 months.”
Sharks coach John Plumtree praised the Golden Lions for a superb performance in the Currie Cup final.
“We were outplayed in every area of the game and were beaten by the better team. They were backed by a massive crowd, they attacked and defended well, and when they got in front it was always going to be difficult for us,” said Plumtree, who coached The Sharks to Currie Cup titles in 2008 and 2010.
“They had created a lot of momentum since the start of this competition and we weren’t able to stop them today. I think they were probably the more cohesive side.”
Final Score Lions 42 Sharks 16
Scorers
Golden Lions
Tries: Michael Killian, Patric Cilliers, Jaco Taute
Conversions: Elton Jantjies (3)
Penalties: Jantjies (5), Taute
Drop goal: Jantjies
The Sharks
Try: Willem Alberts
Conversion: Frederic Michalak
Penalties: Michalak (3)
Teams:
Golden Lions: 15 Jaco Taute, 14 Deon van Rensburg, 13 Doppies la Grange, 12 Alwyn Hollenbach, 11 Michael Killian, 10 Elton Jantjies, 9 Michael Bondesio, 8 Joshua Strauss (captain), 7. Michael Rhodes, 6. Derick Minnie, 5 Franco van der Merwe, 4 Wikus van Heerden, 3 Patric Cilliers, 2 Bandise Maku, 1 CJ van der Linde.
Replacements: 16 Martin Bezuidenhout, 17 JC Janse van Rensburg, 18 Warren Whiteley, 6 Cobus Grobbelaar, 20 Butch James, 21 Dylan Des Fountain, 22 James Kamana.
The Sharks: 15 Patrick Lambie, 14 Odwa Ndungane, 13 Stefan Terblanche, 12 Marius Joubert, 11 JP Pietersen, 10 Frederic Michalak, 9 Conrad Hoffmann, 8 Ryan Kankowski, 7 Willem Alberts, 6 Keegan Daniel (captain), 5 Ross Skeate, 4 Jean Deysel, 3 Jannie du Plessis, 2 Bismarck du Plessis, 1 Tendai Mtawarira.
Replacements: 16 Craig Burden, 17 Eugene van Staden, 18 Alistair Hargreaves, 19 Marcell Coetzee, 20 Ross Cronje, 21 Adrian Jacobs, 22 Lwazi Mvovo.
Under-19 A-Division
The Golden Lions made it two from three as their Under-19s fought back to beat the Blue Bulls in the first final of the day by 20-19.
In the U19 A-Division final, the Blue Bulls were well on their way to a win. They lead 6-3 at the break, which they extended to 13-3 early in the second half when Wiaan Liebenberg scored a try.
But the home team remained calm and chipped away at the Bulls’ lead. They ended up scoring three tries after the break for a narrow victory.
Scorers:
Golden Lions U19
Tries: Errol Jagger, Tiaan Putter, Stephan Nel
Conversion: Marais Schmidt
Penalty: Schmidt
Blue Bulls U19
Try: Wiaan Liebenberg
Conversion: Tony Jantjies
Penalties: Jantjies (4)
Under-21 A-Division
The Blue Bulls made up in the second final of the day when they beat the Sharks in a highly entertaining Under-21 A-Division final by 46-30.
The Pretoria-based team scored six tries to the three of the Sharks as they dominated proceedings from the outset.
Three of the Bulls’ tries came in the first 25 minutes, with the SA Under-20 captains of the last two seasons, CJ Stander and Arno Botha, both crossing the Sharks’ tryline.
The KwaZulu-Natalians’ nippy scrumhalf Cobus Reinach, whose late father Jaco was a Springbok wing and a Springbok sprinter in the 1980s, scored two of his team’s tries. The Sharks U21s fought back well in the second half, but unfortunately their fullback Gouws Prinsloo had an off day with the boot and missed five of his 11 kicks at goal.
With less than five minutes left on the clock, the Blue Bulls were ahead by at 36-30, but a late converted try by Dalton Davis and a second penalty goal by flyhalf Louis Fouche sealed the victory for the team from Pretoria.
Scorers:
Blue Bulls U21
Tries: Juan Schoeman, Courtnall Skosan, Arno Botha, CJ Stander, Franco Mostert, Dalton Davis
Conversions: Louis Fouche (5)
Penalties: Fouche (2)
Sharks U21
Tries: Cobus Reinach (2), Francois Kleinhans
Conversions: Gouws Prinsloo (3)
Penalties: Prinsloo (3)
Having had time to really think about the Final now… I’m still amazed how well the Lions won!
Just shows you what a good coach can achieve and how much the passion factor means in a game.
Once again, well done Lions… worthy winners!
I would rather say continuity was the difference. OK for that JM must get the accolade. But from a very confused looking S15 coach to the hero everyone makes him out to be, no not so fast for me. I need more time before i do start hanging on his lips.
Morning gents.
Just a flying visit to say hello. Frreking busy and not much free time at all.
Currie Cup was a great game and the intensity shown by the Lions was a pleasure to see.
Whether they’ve progressed sufficiently to take a big step up in the Super Rugby stakes only time will tell.
What is obvious is that JM is a VERY good man manager and has the ability to get a team of previously “average” players to gel as a team and play at a higher level when it matters most.
I just hope it doesn’t go to their heads.
As for the Lions / GLRU, I would like to wish Manie Reyneke the very best for the future. Despite the fact that we rarely saw eye to eye I believe he always did what he thought best for the Union, and at the end of the day he achieved a Currie Cup win. Something that not too many (if any) in his position of CEO at the Lions could achieve before him.
Now is the time for the Union to be bold and innovative in whom they employ to take this BUSINESS to another level.
Fcuk the arts, let’s Rock and Roll!
All Lions supporters, there is a Photo session at Coca-Cola Park on wednesday morning where you can take photo’s of the players as well as the CC trophy.
Take your own camera. There will also be official photo’s available from Saturday.
I think it’s on the main field at 10h00, but check on the Lions web page to make sure.
Cheers all. Chat later in the week. I’m off to site for the day.
@ superBul:
Superbul, I think the credit that JM is getting is well deserved, you may say he looked confused during the super XV, but the reality is he has achieved a lot with this group of players.
continuity yes, but also fitness elves, an ethos of playing for one another, passion and discipline are all aspects of the game the Lions were without for quite some time.
Looking at the collective unity under which their players go into a ruck, to the creative back line play courtesy of Carlos Spencer, and you have a Lions team with confidence.
Whether this will convert into a sustainable perfomrance during the super Xv next year is still questionable as these young men can still develop quite a bit more.
for them to play against super Xv teams littered with international players week in and week out will be a different challenge alltogether.
I do beleive however that the Lions achieved the most out of the goals they have set for themselves.
If they can end mid table next year in the super rugby competition, it will be a marked improvement.
5 @ biltongbek:
I agree with you…
John Mitchell started just more than a year ago at the Lions, with the Lions in a terrible condition after the Tricky Dickie fiasco.
He has had to do so much:
1. Develop players
2. Bring the side to adequate fitness levels
3. Build a team culture and get the passion flowing again
4. Instill dicipline
5. Set realistic goals
6. Deal with a faulty Administrative System from the top
7. Appoint Assistants and mould them into a coaching unit
8. Unearth a strong Lions captain
9. Develop patterns of play
10. Strenghten an initial Lions defence which was leaking like a sieve
… and he has achieved ALL of that…. despite being a bloody difficult customer towards the Media…
I also don’t think we must have unrealistic expectations of him and the Lions during Super Rugby, they’re stiil some way off as far as having enough International class players are concerned and having enough players with the right experience…
But I think they’ll get there if he is left to do a job and maybe is allowed to buy 2 or 3 High Profile players in positions where the Lions are still vulnerable.
A Guy like Doppies heaping praise on his coach in his speech after the Final also tells me, the team lives and breathes for their coach and each other… which to my mind is the first and foremost building block for building success and an eventual empire.
You can trace every successful team’s results back to the players buying into what their coach wants to do!
Take the examples of Kitch Kristie, Heyneke Meyer, Jake White as only 3 prime examples of this phenomina.
In 1995 The Bokke had a passion for Kitch… and it proved itself in the World Cup result of that year.
In the early 2000’s Heyneke Meyer built the Bulls empire, due to his man-management skills and the fact that the players had no hesitation in fully grabbing Meyer’s blueprint for success.
Even Jake, who I do not like, had one common purpose which his players bought into and his loyalty to his core group resulted in loyalty by players back to him.
All in all we can say about the Lions… What a turn-around… and for that John Mitchell earns my respect.
@ grootblousmile:
You put that as eloquently and well versed as i would expect from you Mr. Groot Blou Smile.
And I wholeheartedly concur.
Have to agree with The SuperBul on this one. JM may be a good coach but the way many people are now calling him the new messiah and only saviour of SA rugby is just a sorry reflection of the state of our local coaching stocks.
7 @ biltongbek:
One has to give credit where due… and I will continue to do so.
I’m not saying the Lions are suddenly World Beaters, but they can definately build on this!
8 @ The_Young_Turk:
I don’t think anybody is hailing Mitchell as the best thing since sliced bread… but you’ve got to admit, there’s been radical improvement at the Lions.
@ The_Young_Turk:
turk, the problem is there is more reality in that perception than we want to admit.
grootblousmile wrote:
A simple thank you for the compliment is all that is needed.
I know that even you a hardened blooded blue bull supporter from birth, can be objective, scary it may be, but yes possible.
@ grootblousmile:
Indeed, he gets my respect and congratulations. But I think “worship” is far too soon. There is this tendency for either black or white in SA and I mean that literally and figuratively 🙂 What about a considered evaluation of the good points and the bad points of JM as Bok coach.
11 @ biltongbek:
Thanks.
I might be blue to the core, but I’m not bind or deaf… or dumb.
What is scary about me being objective…. maybe that some people and some supporters might not like me for being honest….. hahaha
@ grootblousmile:
GBS, for me objectivity is evidence of a clear mind.
subjectivity on the other hand, well it is akin to a woman debating a factual argument with emotional reasoning. nine times out of ten, it gets you nowhere.
12 @ The_Young_Turk:
I definately do not worship Mitchell…
But I like his diciplined approach…
His bad traits… well there are a few of those… like for instance he could and should work on his media relations and cut out that one little speach impediment he has where he appears to be sucking a toffee whilst speaking… terrible habit, that.
I also don’t think he will be able to put up with the tossers at SARU and send them straight to hell if, no actually WHEN, they are bloody pedantic and slow to co-operate in the National interests.
@ biltongbek:
That’s what I meant. The coaching stocks in SA are not exciting but what is the impression of JM in NZ? It’s a mixed picture of him over there. Just imagine him as coach of the boks and after losing our first test against the All Blacks. The public will be wanting to slaughter him in the streets. No, he needs to stay at the Lions and build up a record. We, as the SA public, will only be ready for a kiwi coach if the Boks performance drops much lower than it is now.
@ The_Young_Turk:
Geez Turk, how much lower would you like us to sink?
2 out of ten wins in the last two tri nations, that isn’t even low, it is just embaressing.
@ biltongbek:
No, of course not what I would like bru. I am talking about the public at large. We are not ready for a foreign coach unfortunately because most people think follow their emotions, not their heads.
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