UCT, Maties face must-win duels
JUST a couple of weeks ago, three-time winners of the Varsity Cup, Maties, were in serious danger of missing out on the play-offs.
At the same time their arch-rivals UCT, 2014 champions, were riding a three-game unbeaten run closing in on a top-four finish and passage to the knockout phases.
Well, after last Monday night’s penultimate round of fixtures things have changed a bit for the two Western Cape representatives.
Maties, thanks to a hard-fought 26-16 home victory win over Port Elizabeth rivals NMMU-Madibaz, find themselves on 16 points and in fifth place on the eight-team standings, while UCT, after being walloped by unbeaten Shimlas 44-24, remain in fourth.
Both have plenty of work ahead to block out a few more challengers vying for the “bottom two” play-off spots.
Maties coach Chris Rossouw and his young and inexperienced side play rookies CUT in the final round of fixtures today, and a big home win at the Danie Craven Stadium is on the cards for the men in maroon, given that their Free State opponents haven’t won a game – in fact they’ve lost all six by huge margins.
So it should be a maximum five-point haul for the men from Stellenbosch and 21 log points in total.
Defending champions UCT (18 points) entertain sixth-placed UJ (15 points) at the Green Mile and the Ikey Tigers must win it to advance to the play-offs – anything less from the men in blue and white and their title defence will come to an abrupt end should NWU-Pukke prevail against log-leaders Tuks and UJ bag a bonus-point win.
The 44-24 beating Ikeys took from unbeaten Shimlas in Bloemfontein last time out could prove to be a mortal blow for coach Kevin Musikanth’s charges who were poor in the forward department and generally off-colour.
They just never got going and, worst of all, they lost several key personnel to a spate of injuries during the one-sided 80-minute encounter at Shimla Park, with influential scrumhalf James Alexander the biggest casualty. He is set to miss the rest of the campaign.
It’s a wait-and-see scenario now for Ikeys ahead of what is going to be a titanic final-round match-up with so much hinging on the outcome.
UJ are tough opponents and they will be confident that they have what it takes to climb into fourth spot.
The Johannesburg outfit has only conceded four tries on one occasion and boasts the best defensive record among the eight competing teams.
But they have lost two on the trot, after enjoying a four-game unbeaten run, their last outing a 34-0 hiding dished out by log-leading Tuks.
Tuks and second-placed Shimlas have already qualified for the play-offs (and home semis), but the battle between them for outright top spot is on. Whoever does prevail will earn host status should they reach the final.
Both sides have amassed 25 points, with Tukkies enjoying a better points-difference of 36. Tuks travel to second-bottom NMMU, while Shimlas welcome third-placed NWU-Pukke (19), the 2014 finalists.
From a Cape standpoint, there is much for UCT and Maties to play for. Let’s not forget that they have between them competed in all seven previous finals, an outstanding statistic.