Will the Bulls pull off a hat-trick?

Will 2011 see the Vodacom Bulls complete a hat-trick of Super rugby titles, or will the Sharks finally break the shackles and bury the ghost of 2007? The Vodacom Super 15 competition commences on Friday when the Hurricanes host the Highlanders, and the Rebels meet the Waratahs.

On Saturday, the Sharks will meet their bogey team, the Cheetahs, in Durban, while the Lions and the defending champions, the Bulls, will be at each other’s throats in another mouth-watering local derby.

In assessing the chances of the local teams to win the Super 15 competition, the Bulls emerge as the standout-team, with the Sharks and the Stormers also appearing to be realistic contenders for Super 15 glory.

The daunting prospects of teams traveling to Pretoria are not only to beat a team that would probably field 14 Springboks in their starting line-up. It’s also to be able to neutralise the ability by the Bulls to string together 15 phases or more and then build up a head of steam.

The acceleration and momentum of the Bulls makes them an irresistible force when the Force is with them, to use an old Star Wars phrase.

The return after injury, of Fourie du Preez, and the availability of superb finishers in Bjorn Basson, Francois Hougaard and Gerhard van den Heever, will give the Bulls that X-factor to break deadlocks against the best defenders in the business.

The Stormers will be strengthened by the return of Andries Bekker and the availability of CJ van der Linde.

But the lack of reserves in the pivotal fly-half position where few other great players emerge to assist Peter Grant, is a source of concern.

There are enough game-breakers, though, and that will give the Stormers confidence.

They have a reputation as one of the best defensive units in the Super rugby competition.

The Sharks finished the Super 14 competition with a bang after starting it with a whimper in 2010.

They also featured superbly during the Currie Cup competition. The way in which the Sharks stood up to the Bulls in the Currie Cup semi-final was one of the most remarkable features of the competition.

It also showed that their tight forwards have matured significantly. But injuries have made them vulnerable in the lock position, and that is an area that they will have to address.

The continual progress of Patrick Lambie and the performance by Meyer Bosman at inside-centre would be other factors that will be assessed closely by their supporters.

Whatever they do, the Sharks cannot afford a slow inconspicuous start to their 2011 campaign.

The fact that South African teams will play 12  out of 16 games at home and will be involved in eight derbies will suit the playing style of the combative Cheetahs.

In 2010, they finished 10th, their best Super 14 finish yet.

But they do not possess the same depth as the more professional units like the Bulls, Sharks and Stormers.

They have lost Lionel Mapoe to the Lions and Basson to the Bulls, and the lack of speed was a critical factor when they lost to Western Province in the semi-finals of the Currie Cup.

If the Cheetahs lose key players to injury early in the competition, their best finishing position might be eighth to tenth.

The Lions could not manage one win during a disappointing 2010 campaign.

The Lions have been revived by two billionaire businessmen and a former All Blacks coach.

The injection of money from Robert Gumede and Ivor Ichikowitz - and the influence of new coach John Mitchell - turned the Lions around at the end of last year.

They have acquired the services of Mapoe, Waylon Murray, Rory Kockott, Patric Cilliers, David de Villiers and Dries van Schalkwyk.

Mitchell  the new coach was at the helm when the All Blacks won the Tri-Nations trophy in 2002 and 2003. So he knows all about the high pressure-cooker and the right way to manage top teams.

In Elton Jantjies they have a pivot that can unlock defences and can bolster the attacking capabilities of the hard-running Lions.

A lack of experience at this level could be detrimental to the performance of the Lions.

"It's a whole new ball game,'' said Stormers coach Allister Coetzee.

"Local derbies are always tough, physical, closely contested affairs. It's  going to be a dogfight for that top spot,” he told Sports Illustrated.

Pacing yourself will be key, says Frans Ludeke, coach of the Bulls. “The management of players will be vital because you have to know when to go hard and when to ease up. Finding the right balance will be vital for us,” he told the Sunday Times.

Naka Drotské, coach of the Cheetahs, will be heartened by the return of Heinrich Brussouw by the third week of the tournament. Drotské says the physical preparations have been the best in four years, and their campaign started two weeks after the Currie Cup final.

John Plumtree, coach of the Sharks, has endorsed the sentiments expressed by Ludeke. The ultimate question is how to manage your squad well and how to keep your senior players fresh. If you don’t manage your squad well, your campaign could be derailed early, he warned.

Plumtree has already been frustrated by niggling injuries to Bismarck du Plessis, JP Pietersen and John Smit.

But Plumtree and his boys have a score to settle. They were heading for the title in 2007 before Frans Steyn missed a relatively easy conversion and allowed Bryan Habana to score a late try that broke rugby hearts in Durban.

The Bulls possess the team to win their third Super rugby title in three years. But you cannot discard the Crusaders, the Waratahs, the Stormers and the Sharks. One of this quartet of contenders could upset the Bulls in 2011.