This is how long it’s been for a South African team to win the Super Rugby trophy.
One has to go back to 2010 for the last team to win it for SA when the Bulls edged the Stormers 25-17 in Soweto and it was also the last edition of the Super 14, while in the five years of the Super 15, or SuperRugby as it was officially called, New Zealand won it three times and Australia twice.
Yet again prospects are high for local teams to turn their fortunes around with the new format to be introduced the end of February with the teams enlarged from 15 to 18 with the addition of the Kings (SA), Sunwolves (Japan) and Jaguares (Argentina).
This time around there are four sections with two SA sections and one each from Australia and New Zealand, with the top teams in each section qualifying for the quarterfinals which means SA could have at least two playoff contenders if they manage to perform better than the Jaguares and Sunwolves.
There will also be less travel with SA teams only playing two or three games abroad compared to the four of the past when they spend a month on the road.
In the one SA section the Bulls, Sharks and Cheetahs will be joined by the Jaguares and they will only face Aussie opposition while in the other SA section the Lions, Sharks, Kings and Sunwolves will only face Kiwi opposition which will be rotated in 2017 again.
There will also be 15 games compared to the 16 of the previous format, while there will be less local derbies with teams playing the other teams in their section twice on a home and away basis but only once against the other teams in the second SA section.
To date the Bulls remain the only SA team to have won the title with their triumps in 2007, 2009 and 2010, with the Sharks coming close in 2007 and the Stormers edged in 2010 with the Bulls both times coming out on tops.
