Titans are the former. With national reinforcements like AB de Villiers, Morne Morkel and Farhaan Behardien, T20 heavyweights Albie Morkel, Alfonso Thomas and the newly acquired Herschelle Gibbs, it seems they could field an international quality side. De Villiers and Behardien showed their importance when they ushered a tricky chase in the play-off while Morkel and Thomas took eight wickets between them.

As a unit, they are used to winning. Since the franchise system was put in place nine seasons ago, they have won eight trophies and shared one. They produce players who step into the national set-up at will and are known as competitive, confident cricketers who were embarrassed by their last-place finish in the first-class competition which came after failing to win a single match.They missed out on the one-day cup final and hovered near the bottom of the table in the T20s until they surged to the top and were pipped at the final post to force them into the play-off. This is their chance to keep their title average up where it has always been, one a summer, and stamp their authority on South African cricket again.For Lions, there's a lot more they need to prove. Despite being the most consistent franchise in the country this season - second in the first-class competition, shared winners of the one-day cup and top of the T20 table - they have not won a trophy. In the last calendar year, they have had four opportunities to do so, beginning with the 2012 domestic T20, one which they lost to Titans. Few thought Lions would get as far as that final and when they did, that was considered enough. But they surpassed all expectations when they made the final of the CLT20 before crumbling to Sydney Sixers. Two washouts meant they were joint-winners of the 50-over competition and now, they are tired of settling for second-best.