Powerless to stop the leadshedding?

If last weekend's action is anything to go by, there is only one thing for it in modern rugby: if you want to win a game, first make sure you're never in a place where you think you can no longer lose it.

If a negative result is what you're after there seem to be few options more effective than racking up a massive lead before pressing the cruise button.

We saw such a tragicomedy play out at Emirates Airline Park on Saturday in the Vodacom Super Rugby match between the Lions and the Rebels.

It was around 4pm that Eskom chose to cut power to major areas of Johannesburg - but instead of complaining, Lions fans were relieved. Like the power grid, they have had enough.

Pets were already hiding under beds and toddlers were clinging to their mommies as the lights went out with the Joburg-based outfit trailing 33-5 with little more than half an hour left on the stadium clock. It was the last rites interrupted, we thought, except it wasn't.

Instead it was the witnessing of an indubitable miracle that we were denied.

As the power went it soon became apparent to the handful of souls lucky enough to see the spectacle live that it was the visiting Australian team that was plugged into the mains. The real all black had descended on them, the Rebels had lost their cause.

What followed was a four-try frenzy from the home team lasting just 14 minutes before a late penalty by replacement flyhalf Gianni Lombard sealed the deal. Even Pastor Lukau was left stunned.

"Walking into that change room, I was in a flat spin. I don't think I’ve ever lost it like that before at halftime. I really lost it because I know how good these guys can be and they were not," Lions coach Swys de Bruin later told reporters.

"There were one or two words that came out badly and I'm sorry about that. But in hindsight, it was maybe time to lay the marker down for once because that first half wasn’t good enough."

Considering that the week before it was the Lions who ended their match conceding 26 unanswered points against the Jaguares, one is tempted to ask whether what is wrong with the team this year isn't merely coach Swys getting the timing of his "flat spins" wrong.

We had an even more dramatic comeback at Twickenham over the weekend, where Eddie Jones' much-hyped England let slip a mammoth halftime lead of 31-0, shipping 38 unanswered points to Scotland and needing an added-time George Ford try to salvage an embarrassing draw.

It is a recurring theme for England. In the June series last year they also raced out to big leads against the Springboks in the first two tests only to be yanked back by the mane to end up losing on both occasions.

Earlier in the Six Nations this year England also failed to score a single second-half point in the match against Wales, effectively turning a 13-9 halftime lead into a 21-13 loss, unable to muster even a goodbye wave to their Grand Slam hopes.

Jones believes his team's problems are fixable, and he is rumoured to bring in a specialist to help his charges think more clearly in those pressure situations.

"It's about how the team thinks under pressure," said Jones, who took off captain Owen Farrell after the flyhalf made errors that led directly to two Scotland tries.

"It's like we have some hand grenades in the back of a jeep and sometimes they go off when there's a lot of pressure. We have a few of them and we've got to get rid of them."

Eddie is right. Recent rugby results from around the globe strongly suggest to us that 2019 may well be the year that the World Cup gets decided off the bench.

Here in South Africa we also have plenty to consider when it comes to our lack of finishing off games. The Springboks lost far too many games as a result of last-quarter fades last year, with tests like those in Washington, Brisbane and London jumping to mind.

The Springboks also famously lost the unlosable test against the All Blacks at Loftus Versveld where they were in complete charge of proceedings and leading 30-18 with five minutes left before completely imploding to lose 32-30.

After the test All Black coach Steve Hansen quipped: "Today the All Blacks learned to never stop believing and the Springboks learned to never stop playing."

Well, we hope they learned.

Eddie Jones and Rassie Erasmus have vastly different takes on how to use a bench. Jones, this year, has stopped using the word replacements, instead choosing a specialist team of what he now officially calls "finishers". Erasmus, on the other hand, prefers to keep his key decision-makers on the field, only replacing them if the coaching team detects a clear drop-off in performance levels.

They can't both be right.

In these days of miracle and wonder it will be every World Cup coach's main concern to prevent his team from ever becoming involved in even one of these Lazarus re-enactments. Maintaining clear focus and high intensity levels with 23 men for all 80 minutes is what everyone will be after.

This is a year in which at least eight teams can win the World Cup, but only one will. You can bet your dear granny's house on the fact that it won’t be because of a 30-point comeback in the final.

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Here is our look at what happened elsewhere in the world of rugby.

Tries of the week:

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Best of social media:

Egon making the most of his Seconds chance...

A 20-1 penalty count against the Rebels, meaning that the Lions only infringed once for the game. Even when down 33-5...

Righto, then.#SuperRugby #LIOvREB

— Brett McKay (@BMcSport) March 16, 2019

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Basically the same thing. Stormers were on fire in the second half...

When you watch #STOvJAG rugby in South Africa and #Loadshedding kicks in! ?? pic.twitter.com/YIrd3ryNy5

— JG (Johan) van Zyl ? (@JGvanZyl_ZA) March 15, 2019

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Now we know...

Crowd at DHL (Dis Heeltemal Leeg) Newlands = 10411 tonight #STOvJAG

— Leighton Koopman (@Leighton_K) March 15, 2019

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Teams are tied with one minute left on the clock. Every single time...

And time to warm up the Random Penalty Generator #SUNvRED

— Steve Lenthall (@steve_l15) March 16, 2019

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IT'S ONLY A GAME

The Highlanders revealed in the week that they suffered significant financial losses because of the decision not to play their famous South Island derby against the Crusaders in the wake of last week's Mosque Massacres in Christchurch.

According to the franchise they didn't have insurance to cover for losses incurred if a match had to be cancelled.

But that barely matters.

The decision was undoubtedly the correct one in those dire circumstances, and it came after extensive discussions with among others the police, franchise stakeholders and especially the young men who actually had to go out and play.

Highlanders chief executive Roger Clark said the game would not be replayed and Saturday was uncharted territory for the franchise and New Zealand Rugby.

The Wrap desk would like to join the rest of the world in extending our heartfelt condolences to everyone affected.

PSYCHIC SIDEKICK

The Daily Mirror reported this week that the famous spoon-bending Israeli psychic Uri Geller has offered his services to beleaguered England coach Eddie Jones.

"If I can be with the team at the World Cup, they are going to win. Eddie Jones, if you hear me now, get me to meet the players," Geller told talkSPORT.

"All I need is 10-15 minutes with the players, I will definitely instil powerful energies in them and they will start winning. Energy does exist, this is not mumbo jumbo!

"I use visualisation techniques. It's a subliminal hypnotic awakening of their mind to activate their adrenaline to make them win. There is no doubt they will win."

Here at the Wrap desk we are worried that this may actually work. Just to play it safe we urge the Springboks to rope in Andre The Hilarious Hypnotist.