THE FINAL WHISTLE
MARK KEOHANE: Time to switch off the Currie Cup’s life-support machine
‘Professionalism, with the introduction of Super Rugby and a full-on Test schedule, has systematically suffocated the life of the Currie Cup’
Respect the history of the Currie Cup, acknowledge it no longer has a pulse and has been on a life-support machine — and finally lay it to rest. Professionalism, with the introduction of Super Rugby and a full-on Test schedule, has systematically suffocated the life of the Currie Cup. It is not what it once was and, realistically, it could never be what it once was when the game turned professional and international provincial rugby became the heartbeat of South African rugby. The pretence that the Currie Cup of 2017 speaks in any way to the preprofessional era Currie Cup is outrageous. The competition in no way reflects the one established in 1891. Super Rugby is the premier provincial or regional competition for South African teams and the PRO14, by nature of the strength of the overseas teams in the contest, is second on the list. The SuperSport Challenge, the now defunct Vodacom Cup in another guise, is fourth and what is called the Currie Cup is a combination of those players f...
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