Straeuli was true to his promise

Regardless of whether they win or lose in Saturday's final, caps have to be doffed to the achievements of Rudolf Straeuli and his Sharks.

Visiting ABSA Stadium last week, it was hard to believe that this was the same venue where just 12 months ago the Sharks signed off their 2000 campaign as wooden spoonists. A funereal air hung over the stadium back then as Natal officials conducted the witch hunt which is the inevitable consequence of such dramatic failure.

That mood has been replaced by one of enthusiastic, snappy professionalism.

Like all successful ventures, the commitment shines through every facet of the ABSA Stadium operation.

And it extends way beyond the field of play. For instance, when I phoned the stadium early in the week to request accreditation I was informed that it had already been organised. A hasty word with Sharks team manager Piet Strydom after the match in Wellington the previous week was all that it had needed.

As one official put it, "Down here there is no confirmation necessary". It is a little like the Sharks motto for the past season - "Zero complaints". It was introduced by Strydom, and he felt it rebound on him when he started to get tetchy with an air-hostess on the long flight to Australia.

"We had waited for an hour for our food, but when I called the lady across to give her a piece of my mind all the guys started chipping in to remind me of our motto," said Strydom.

Speaking to Strydom, it is clear that this has been a wondrously successful season. The "team of the '90s" has made a great start to its quest to become the team of the new millennium.

But it all has to start somewhere. Lest it be forgotten, last year started with an air of expectancy. Gaffie du Toit, AJ Venter, Albert van den Berg and a host of others had been lured down to replace retiring heroes like Gary Teichmann, Henry Honiball and Andre Joubert.

Straeuli has his own theory why his direct predecessor, Hugh Reece-Edwards, was unable to gel these resources into a winning unit. According to Straeuli, it was always going to be difficult time for Ian McIntosh's immediate successor. He believes Reece-Edwards was thrown in at the deep end.

Straeuli is of the opinion that after the disasters which preceded his appointment, he was going to be on a winning wicket as he could only improve the situation.

But we should not allow Straeuli to deflect the credit away from himself. For if the truth were to be told, he has been at the heart of the Sharks' ressurection.

It was Straeuli who reintroduced discipline to ABSA Stadium and it was Straeuli who recognised that a whole new approach was necessary if the union was to prosper. He quickly recognised that part of the problem was that the previous regime had allowed too much player power. So he changed it.

There was much laughter when news leaked out of Durban that in his first team talk he had adopted the Kitch Christie line: "I believe in fitness and discipline. You can call me coach or Mr Straeuli."

Many thought it was an attitude which would flounder in Natal, but Straeuli had astutely summed up the situation. The players who had thrived under what became known as the "Natal rules" of Ian Mac had moved on. Straeuli recognised that there was a new culture coming through. The players, most of them youngsters reared outside of Durban, required a different approach.

But that did not mean that Straeuli's team did not have fun. Indeed, Strydom gave me the feeling he could keep me in his office all day as he related the fun incidents which eased the pressure on the Sharks during the overseas tour.

And no-one who has seen them play would try and deny that this Sharks team has team spirit - and plenty of it.

What was different this time - and skipper Mark Andrews backed this up - was that everything was so much better organised than before. Straeuli, like a true professional, had spent hours and hours on the intricate planning he believed was necessary, and his management team worked those long hours with him.

It is so much easier for players to perform on the field when everything is working like clockwork off it. This efficiency extended beyond logistics.

Straeuli's controversial decision to rotate his squad in rounds four and 10 was an example of his all-encompassing pre-season planning for the challenges that would be met on the field of play.

According to former Sharks hooker John Allan, who helped periodically with the scrumming, the important thing was not that Straeuli's decision was right or wrong, but that he made it early in the competition and then resolved to stick with it come hell or high water.

It was a policy which made even the fringe players feel part of the squad in that it meant they got to play in at least a few of the games. Almost everyone had a chance to come on as a replacement as he made liberal use of his bench.

Then there was the consistency of selection which contributed to the flush of confidence which oozed through the squad from the early stages of the Super 12.

When players are sure of their places, they play for their team, and not for themselves. Hence the development of the Craig Davidson/Butch James/Trevor Halstead axis which became such a pivotal part of the Sharks' backline metamorphosis.

And metamorphosis there certainly was. People still refer to the Sharks as a team with a conservative strategy, but this is a long way from the truth. As we saw in last weekend's semi-final, when the Sharks backs and loose-forwards combined to flumox their opponents with subtle variations of depth and flashy interplays, this team is as creative as any in the competition.

Halstead, for one, may be a far less limited player than many think he is. After last week, I have to agree with Straeuli that he is one that national coach Harry Viljoen might have taken a closer look at.

When the Sharks were conservative was in last year's Currie Cup. But the situation demanded it - the players had to establish some confidence again before they could start running with the ball.

To his credit, the coach never allowed the criticism of his methods to deflect him from his task. The charge in the buildup to last year's Currie Cup final that a Sharks victory would be bad for South African rugby was like water off a duck's back.

He told me after that game that this year would be different. He knew as well as anyone that a team could not win the Super 12 playing the rugby his team did in the Currie Cup. He vowed that the new season would see a change, with his players growing in assurance and confidence.

Looking back over the past few months, I dare say he was true to his word.