The Greek orator and politician Demosthenes once said: "Every advantage in the past is judged in the light of the final issue."

To apply this to Saturday's Super 14 Final, between the Bulls and Chiefs in Pretoria, it means nothing that has gone before this season has any relevance. The teams' seasons will be judged on this game.

This is the last and decisive match of the 2009 Super Rugby season and only one team will claim the winners' medals.

As clichéd as it sounds, nobody cares much for the team that finished second. Runners-up is a poor consolation for a team that has worked so hard to get to the Final and then to lose.

The Bulls know how it feels to be 'winners' - they achieved that status in 2007.

The Chiefs have never before appeared in a Final.

Not surprising then to hear the Bulls talk of how to "cope in a Final", while the Chiefs talk of "lessons learnt earlier this season".

Victor Matfield, who led the Bulls onto the winners podium in 2007, said his team's recipe will be simple: "Stick to the basics."

The most important thing in a Final, according to Matfield, is to stay with what has worked for you all year.

"You certainly don't go out there and start doing different things," Matfield told this website.

It means those hoping to see a free-flowing game from the Bulls will be disappointed.

They will employ the same tactics, very effective tactics, that brought them into the grand finale.

There will be kicking, sometimes lots of it and, hopefully for Bulls fans, very effective kicking. In a Final the territorial game is vital.

Or as Matfield said: "We must just do the basics well.

"In a Final, when there's a lot of pressure, the most important thing is doing the basics well. Those small things can make a big difference in the end and that is why it is important to concentrate on those small things and not start fretting about the result or other side issues."

So, expect the Bulls to grind out a win, use their forwards to secure quality possession - with the halfback combination of Fourie du Preez and Morné Steyn dictating terms with the boot.

Don't be mistaken, the Bulls can - and will - counter when the opportunity arises. But they won't be taking any unnecessary risks.

The reason, as Matfield rightly pointed out, is simple - you never know when you will get another shot at winning a Super 14 title.

"We now have this chance, in the Super 14 Final and at Loftus on top of that," Matfield said.

"This is our opportunity and we must grab it with both hands.

"If we don't take it and make the best of this shot at a title, we don't know if we'll ever get another chance."

Obviously the Chiefs have the same dreams. They know, even more so, how rare it is to appear in a Final.

The only Chiefs player to have previous experience of a Final is captain Mils Muliaina, who won the Super 12 with the Blues in 2003.

The rest of his team will step onto the grand stage for the first time.

Muliaina said the Chiefs needed to start well, get an early lead and not allow the Bulls back into the game.

He took note of how the Bulls have managed to come from behind several times this season, especially last week in the semifinal when the Crusaders were leading 20-7 after 30 minutes and by half-time the Bulls had raced into a 27-20 lead.

But the Chiefs, as most teams tell you, will focus on their own game, rather than worry about how they would 'counter' the opposition.

"There are a lot of things we can do better [than earlier in the season]," Muliaina said from the team's base in Pretoria.

He also felt that during their 27-33 loss to the Bulls in Round 11, they did not use their opportunities - that they were not clinical enough.

"Play at the breakdown, and the way we take ball into contact, is important. We spent a lot of time in their 22m area putting on pressure then lost the ball when it was kicked back downfield.

"There will be a lot of physicality. They have big men out there and that is why we have been concentrating on getting our bodies right," he said.

Both teams know that on Saturday it will be about the team that take their opportunities and make the least number of mistakes.

Above all, it will require an all-out 80-minute effort.

"We know what we're in for," Muliaina said.

Players to watch:

For the Bulls: In a Final you are tempted to list all 22 players, as they will all play some role. However, the key players are undoubtedly at halfback - scrumhalf Fourie du Preez and flyhalf Morné Steyn. They are the Generals giving direction to the troops. Of course there is Victor Matfield's line-out work and Bakkies Botha's aggression, not to forget Bryan Habana's sublime skills.

For the Chiefs: It probably starts with captain and fullback Mils Muliaina, who will no doubt have to be alert to the barrage of high bombs and other tactical kicks that will be flying in his direction. Along with wings Lelia Masaga and Dwayne Sweeney, how they counter from those deep kicks could go a long way to determining the Chiefs' success - or lack thereof. There is also the driving play of No.8 Sione Lauaki, while his discipline - those infamous stiff-arm tackles that has caused so much trouble this season - could give the Bulls a few shots at goal.

Head to head: There are interesting battles all over the field, but we'll start with fullback - where the relatively inexperienced Bulls No.15 Zane Kirchner (in his first Final) will oppose the Chiefs' All Black star and captain Mils Muliaina. If we skip past the exciting wings on both teams and the classy midfielders, we get to the other key area - flyhalf. Morné Steyn (Bulls) has made strong claims for inclusion in the Springbok team this year and Stephen Donald (Chiefs) is the All Black incumbent in the absence of the injured Dan Carter. At No.8 we have two hulking big men - the class of Pierre Spies (Bulls) against the brute force of Sione Lauaki (Chiefs). Hooker is probably the most contrasting of all the positions on the field - the relatively small frame of Derick Kuün (Bulls) against another hulking human in Aled de Malmanche (Chiefs).

Last 10 encounters:
2009: Bulls won 33-27, Pretoria
2008: Chiefs won 43-27, Rotorua
2007: Bulls won 30-27, Pretoria
2006: Bulls and Chiefs drew 26-26, Hamilton
2005: Bulls won 29-26, Pretoria
2004: Chiefs won 24-22, Hamilton
2003: Bulls won 29-26, Pretoria
2002: Chiefs won 53-24, Hamilton
2001: Chiefs won 49-37, Pretoria
2000: Chiefs won 40-7, Rotorua

Road to the Final:

Bulls:
Round 1: bt Reds 33-20, Pretoria
Round 2: bt Blues 59-26, Pretoria
Round 3: bt Lions 16-9, Johannesburg
Round 4: bt Stormers 14-10, Pretoria
Round 5: Bye
Round 6: bt Hurricanes 19-14, Wellington
Round 7: lost to Highlanders 12-36, Palmerston North
Round 8: lost Crusaders 13-16, Christchurch
Round 9: bt Waratahs 20-6, Sydney
Round 10: lost to Brumbies 31-32, Canberra
Round 11: bt Chiefs 33-27, Pretoria
Round 12: bt Force 32-29, Pretoria
Round 13: bt Cheetahs 29-20, Pretoria
Round 14: bt Sharks 27-26, Durban
Semifinal: bt Crusaders 36-23, Pretoria

Chiefs:
Round 1: lost to Crusaders 13-19, Christchurch
Round 2: lost to Waratahs 7-11, Sydney
Round 3: lost Sharks 15-22, Hamilton
Round 4: bt Force 31-13, Hamilton
Round 5: bt Highlanders 14-10, Invercargill
Round 6: bt Blues 63-34, Hamilton
Round 7: bt Reds 50-26, Brisbane
Round 8: bt Lions 36-29, Hamilton
Round 9: Bye
Round 10: bt Cheetahs 28-10, Kimberley
Round 11: lost to Bulls 27-33, Pretoria
Round 12: bt Stormers 28-14, Cape Town
Round 13: bt Hurricanes 16-8, Hamilton
Round 14: bt Brumbies 10-7, Hamilton
Semifinal: bt Hurricanes 14-10, Hamilton

iafrica.com Prediction: The Bulls have shown a certain ruthlessness this season — the kind you come to expect of championship teams. It is not always flash, but certainly effective. The Chiefs have class, oodles of it, and they are a dangerous team that can turn a game in an instant with their dangerous running backs. But this game is at Loftus Versfeld, in Pretoria, where the Bulls have not lost in over a year - 10 straight wins. We know it will be close and the Chiefs will give the Bulls a big scare, but we feel Victor Matfield and his men will have enough in the bank to grind out a good win - by about 10 points.

Teams:

Bulls: 15 Zane Kirchner, 14 Akona Ndungane, 13 Jaco Pretorius, 12 Wynand Olivier, 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Morné Steyn, 9 Fourie du Preez, 8 Pierre Spies, 7 Dewald Potgieter, 6 Deon Stegmann, 5 Victor Matfield (captain), 4 Bakkies Botha, 3 Werner Kruger, 2 Derick Kuün, 1 Gurthrö Steenkamp.
Replacements: 16 Chiliboy Ralepelle, 17 Rayno Gerber, 18 Danie Rossouw, 19 Pedrie Wannenburg, 20 Heini Adams, 21 Burton Francis, 22 Marius Delport.

Chiefs: 15 Mils Muliaina (captain), 14 Lelia Masaga, 13 Richard Kahui, 12 Callum Bruce, 11 Dwayne Sweeney, 10 Stephen Donald, 9 Toby Morland, 8 Sione Lauaki, 7 Tanerau Latimer, 6 Liam Messam, 5 Kevin O'Neill, 4 Craig Clarke, 3 James McGougan, 2 Aled de Malmanche, 1 Sona Taumalolo.
Replacements: 16 Hika Elliot, 17 Joe Savage, 18 Toby Lynn, 19 Serge Lilo, 20 David Bason, 21 Mike Delany, 22 Sosene Anesi.

Date: Saturday, May 30
Venue: Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
Kick-off: 17:30, (GMT 15.30)
Weather conditions: Clear skies and refreshingly cool. High 21°C, low 6°C. Wind 25km/h westerly
Referee: Jonathan Kaplan
Touch judges: Craig Joubert, Cobus Wessels
TMO: Johann Meuwesen

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