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Published 14:35 17 Sept 2017 BST
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While Kings can hope to improve as the league goes on and a recruitment drive brings in new blood, they have one gaping problem that is not getting solved soon - they have no bloody fans.
This was their first home game in their first ever season in the Guinness PRO14. This, we were told, was history.
The PR and media spin around Port Elizabeth had been massive. Match tickets for the main stand were going for less than €3.50. Leinster's matchday squad had 15 Ireland internationals - they weren't bringing mugs to South Africa.
We're fully aware that the Super Rugby season is not long over and the Currie Cup is rumbling away but where in the name of hell were the Kings fans? Do they exist?
When Zebre, Treviso and Dragons come to Limerick and Dublin, Munster and Leinster are often struggling to fill their grounds but attendance levels are still high. There is an actual fan-base.
Kings may recruit well and may get in a few more internationals but where are they going to find the fans from? Hardly anyone seems to have embraced the team and embraced the PRO14 concept.
The Cheetahs fared somewhat better, on Saturday evening, as they got a shade under 20,000 in the door at Toyota Stadium for their 54-39 win over Zebre. The Cheetahs franchise has been going four years longer than the Kings but both were cut from Super Rugby for a reason - tepid results and traction with fans.
As of 2pm on Sunday, more than 14 hours after they beat Zebre, Cheetahs don't even have a match report on their website.
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