Opinion - Not for the first time this year, a team called the Lions just showed New Zealand rugby fans how important it is to not count your chickens before they hatch, Jamie Wall writes.
Lions players celebrate with Kwagga Smith after his try during the semi-final. Photo: AFP
Back in June, the British & Irish Lions arrived to a virtual tsunami of derision about their chances of success against not only the All Blacks, but every Super Rugby side they'd face too. They not only knocked off the previously unbeaten Crusaders, but whipped the highly fancied Māori All Blacks and drew the test series with the All Blacks.
No one saw that coming. So it was a little bit unnerving to hear the chatter from Hurricanes fans throughout the week - it seemed that all the defending champions needed to do to seal another final spot was simply show up to Ellis Park and the Johannesburg-based Lions would roll over and die.
To be fair to the Canes, it certainly felt that way after half an hour of the match itself. In the afternoon sun, they found themselves leading by a mile and probably more than a few fans back home went to bed thinking it was all over and they could get a bit of extra sleep.
While the Canes had scored an excellent try that Beauden Barrett had set up for Wes Goosen, the other two to TJ Perenara and Ardie Savea were off Lions blunders that couldn't have gone worse if they'd tried. But then the Lions woke up and mounted their impressive comeback.
The scoreline after 30 minutes was 22-3. The scoreline for the rest of the game was 7-41.
Dropped passes, bad kicking, a yellow card and some questionable commitment to defence led to the Canes' downfall - as well as a brilliantly efficient performance by the Lions. It's not too much of a stretch to say that the Canes took them lightly, which is odd given that the Lions had lost only one game all year and were playing at home.
In fact, the main stories of the week leading up to the game were Beauden Barrett apparently getting a hole in one, as well as non-goal kicker TJ Perenara practicing his goal kicking.
The team, the public and the media all thought this one was a done deal. Just like their British & Irish namesakes, the Lions had other ideas.
Sam Lousi, left, of the Hurricanes tackles Lourens Erasmus of the Lions during the Super Rugby semi-final match. Photo: AFP
Earlier, the Crusaders, despite barely having the ball, managed to win their semi-final against the Chiefs in Christchurch. It was a different sort of win to the one the Lions pulled off, instead of relentlessly attacking the Crusaders simply sat back and waited for the Chiefs to make errors.
The Chiefs can feel rightly bemused by the comfortable scoreline they conceded, because it's not like they made a litany of errors that leaked the four tries the Crusaders scored. In fact, they actually played pretty well - an awful lot better than the Hurricanes who scored over twice as many points.
But that's what the Crusaders can do to you, at least in their heap of scaffolding that is their makeshift stadium.
It was only around half full for the match, which is incredibly disappointing given that the Crusaders not only have been playing excellent rugby all year for a 16-1 record, but are also gunning for their first title in nine long years.
For all the folks that didn't show up: you missed out because the Crusaders won't be back. The final is going to be at Ellis Park, in front of about 60,000 South Africans.
And if you think the Lions don't deserve to be hosting it, just have a look at their record. Especially the last game where they trounced the only Super Rugby team that's beaten the Crusaders this year.
*Jamie Wall grew up in Wellington and enjoyed a stunningly mediocre rugby career in which the single highlight was a seat on the bench for his club's premier side. He's enjoyed far more success spouting his viewpoints on the game, and other topics, to anyone who'll care to listen.
