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THE South African cricketers cheered Manchester United to victory in the European Cup on Wednesday night. Apart from the fact that several of the players are unabashed fans of England's famous club, they had just been given a stunning example of how to overcome the ``choke factor''.

All season long, Manchester United shouldered the weight of public expectation as they competed for, and won, one trophy after another. There were the odd hiccups, such as South Africa suffered against Zimbabwe yesterday, but they won the big games.

It is easy to draw an analogy between United and the South African cricket team. Test and one-day series wins over West Indies and New Zealand were the cricketers' equivalent of winning the league and cup. Just as Manchester United had one final, awesome challenge in Barcelona's Nou Camp, so South Africa's holy grail lies at Lord's on June 20.

It was not United's first assault on Europe. Like Hansie Cronjé's team in Pakistan in 1996, they had suffered the crushing disappointment of playing superbly in the early stages, only to fall short of the final. United put the lessons of the past to good use, kept playing attacking football and kept faith in their ability.

``Perhaps it is the year of favourites,'' said coach Bob Woolmer.

So far, South Africa have handled the mantle of World Cup top dogs with impressive pragmatism. Compared to 1996, the campaign has been more mature, more cheerful, less tense.

It is a team confident in its own ability yet seemingly not hamstrung by the fear of failure.

And yet the sceptics remain. Matthew Engel, editor of Wisden, wrote admiringly of the way South Africa overcame a crisis before crushing Sri Lanka, then added the line that they tend blow up when it matters.

``I hope more and more people underestimate us,'' says Woolmer, who believes the ``choker'' label has been well and truly buried. The facts support his case but the truth is that lesser triumphs are easily forgotten. Just as Manchester United followers would have mourned a defeat against Bayern Munich on Wednesday, so South African supporters will be bitterly disappointed if the big prize escapes.

Despite yesterday's defeat, the partnership of Cronje and Woolmer had won 81 and lost only 23 of 107 one-day internationals, with three no-results.

The really impressive statistic, which backs up Woolmer's claim that his men are big-occasion players, is South Africa's record in multi-team tournaments.

Since the 1996 World Cup, South Africa have played in nine tournaments and won six. Twice were they beaten finalists. Only in the end-of-season triangular tournament in England last year did they fail to reach the final - and that was because of one poor match against Sri Lanka when the players were suffering the hangover of a defeat in the Test series.

Some of the wins have been hugely impressive. There was the first campaign in Sharjah immediately after the 1996 World Cup, where India and Pakistan, regular visitors to the desert, were crushed.

There was the Jubilee tournament in Pakistan in 1997/98, where South Africa outclassed the host nation, West Indies and Sri Lanka. Then there was the mini-World Cup in Bangladesh where South Africa triumphed at the beginning of last season.

The list excludes another significant triumph, the Commonwealth Games in Malaysia last year where a below-strength side beat the full might of Australia in the final.

Put all those performances together and the only conclusion is that South Africa should win the World Cup.

They are on target to reach the semifinals, from where two more big games will be enough but one slip will be a disaster.

Woolmer said before leaving South Africa that the semifinal was the game he feared most. In an interview in the Sunday Times he said: ``If South Africa do get to the final, we will win it. I'll back our team against any team in the world. Getting to the final is always going to be the problem. When you get there it's a fantastic occasion and our players have shown they can win the big games.''

Woolmer said a key was that the players were enjoying their cricket. ``It all goes back to our get-together in Swellendam last month. The players were split into four groups and were asked to define their goals for the World Cup and how they should be achieved. All four groups tressed enjoyment.''

What it means, says Woolmer, is that the players have been able to resist outside influences and simply play good cricket, confident in their ability. ``The more relaxed you are, the better you play.''

There have been more rest days between practices than on previous tours, with Woolmer believing this increases the eagerness of the players to get into action, despite having had a punishing programme.

An important decision taken in Amsterdam was that the best players would play in every match. It is certainly open to debate because it means that the likes of Alan Dawson, Dale Benkenstein and Derek Crookes might not play at all, then be needed in a vital game.

``The ideal would be to use 11 or 12 players for the whole campaign. It makes for continuity and there are enough breaks between games. The only stumbling block would be injury but in that case I don't believe changing one or two players will weaken the team or their resolve.''

Tactics are likely to change as the tournament progresses, the weather improves and the pitches become drier and more batsman-friendly.

Woolmer says he is looking forward to the toss becoming less important and says fairer conditions will suit his team. ``We have a flexible strategy and I like to think our planning has been good. The players are enjoying themselves and the only person feeling stress is me. I have to sit on the sidelines.''

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