Rugby: Chiefs feel fairytale ending is in reach

Chiefs v Lions
Hamilton, 7.35 tonight

A slow start followed by a mid-season surge. It's looking every bit a typical Chiefs season so far. The problem with that, of course, is that typical Chiefs seasons tend to tail off without a semifinal appearance, much less a serious tilt at the title.

This year, though, things could be different. The gently purring Rolls-Royce that is the mid-season Chiefs may not, for once, turn into an end-of-season pumpkin; the fairytale ending that has always eluded them might just be possible. At least that's how the brains trust of coach Ian Foster and captain Mils Muliaina are feeling.

Muliaina believes this year's team are better equipped to deal with the hype and expectation created by their surge into playoff contention.

"We probably got a little bit carried away [last season]," he said. "When you win a few games on the trot you get pretty excited. But what I have seen this season is different. The feet are firmly on the ground after each win. And we've got to go out tonight and play a side that can definitely hurt us."

Muliaina's refusal to take the Lions lightly is understandable. Last season, it was a shaky victory over a lowly-rated Reds side that proved the start of a terminal slide.

The Chiefs might have scraped a victory in that match, but they let their standards slip and never fully recovered, sliding to disastrous losses in Perth and Johannesburg against the Lions.

Having won last year's meeting, the Lions will be treated with respect.

It is a respect, however, the record of the identity crisis that is effectively Transvaal (they have also previously gone by the names Cats and Golden Lions) scarcely deserves.

In 14 seasons of Super Rugby the Lions have won just 12 matches away from their high veldt stronghold.

Just four of those rare road successes have come in the past six years.

A fifth-straight Chiefs win, then, is heavily fancied. But their playoff hopes will swing on how many more successes they can achieve during a run-in that includes three matches in South Africa followed by home clashes with the Hurricanes and Brumbies.

He watched his team fold down the stretch last season, but Foster believes this campaign has a different feel.

"Every year is pretty unique, really," he said. "Last year we probably had two phases of our campaign where we got hit really hard by injuries and we struggled. This year it is feeling a little bit more settled. We haven't had the large number of injuries, which has been really positive. And it just seems to me we are building nicely.

"The challenge now is to keep the consistency and the level going."

The schedule has not been overly kind this season but the Chiefs have at least caught a break by drawing a bye ahead of their African jaunt.

"But I think for us it is at a really good time. We are going to be two-thirds of the way through the championship and we have three tough weeks coming up in South Africa. So it is a really good chance for guys to have a bit of a break."

CHIEFS v LIONS

Chiefs:

Mils Muliaina (c)
Lelia Masaga
Richard Kahui
Callum Bruce
Dwayne Sweeney
Stephen Donald
Brendon Leonard
Sione Lauaki
Tanerau Latimer
Liam Messam
Kevin O'Neill
Craig Clarke
Ben May
A. de Malmanche
Sona Taumalolo

Reserves: Hika Elliot, James McGougan, Toby Lynn, Serge Lilo, Toby Morland, Mike Delany, Jackson Willison.

Lions

Louis Ludik
Shandre Frolick
Jaque Fourie
D. la Grange
Henno Mentz
Andre Pretorius
Chris Jonck
Ernst Joubert
Todd Clever
C. Grobbelaar (c)
Anton van Zyl
J. Labuschagne
L. Sephaka
Willie Wepener
H. van der Merwe

Reserves: H. van Dyk, Gert Muller, G. Mostert, Willem Alberts, J. Vermaak, Earl Rose, D. van Rensburg.