Seven teams in hunt for semi-final berths
IT WILL be a decisive weekend for the seven Currie Cup Premier Division teams in the hunt for possible semifinal berths and those in with a chance of earning home semi-finals as the tournament reaches the penultimate round and the pressure reaches a new level.
A handful of teams will enter their matches this weekend knowing that a defeat could deal a killer blow to their hopes of advancing to the play-off stages, while for some of them, bonus-point victories could bolster their home semi-final hopes.
The Sharks, who have a bye, will be interested specatators.
For the Blue Bulls, in particular, their clash against Boland in Wellington today will mark their final throw of the dice in the competition for now, as it marks their final pool match. This means they will have to wait until the pool stages conclude next week to know their fate in the competition.
Boland will go in search of their third victory of the season when they line up against the Blue Bulls today.
The Western Cape outfit defeated the Pretoria side 35-26 in the Currie Cup Qualifiers, but they will be tested this week as the Blue Bulls come off backto-back victories against Griquas, the Pumas and Golden Lions.
The Pretoria side have won all 10 matches between the sides since 1996, with their scores in seven of these matches being 50 points or more.
While a bonus-point victory with a big points’ difference in the Blue Bulls’ last pool match could catapult them into second place on the log standings, with a chance of securing a home semi-final, a defeat could see them lose out on a semi-final berth completely.
Regardless of the outcome, the Blue Bulls will have to wait until the pool rounds conclude next week to know their fate.
The Pumas, meanwhile, will face a challenging task against the Free State Cheetahs in Nelspruit, as they attempt to deny the visitors from extending their winning run to seven matches.
In turn, the Pumas will be looking for a change of fortunes after suffering six straight defeats.
Interestingly, the hosts have had an edge over the Cheetahs recently, with the side winning the Currie Cup Qualifier and both matches in the 2014 Currie Cup edition, while they drew 37-37 in the competition last season. However, given the Free Staters solid form this season, with the team scoring the second highest number of tries and leaking only 13 in six matches, the Pumas will be tested.
The clash between Griquas and Western Province is expected to be thrilling with an eye on the semi-final stages. Griquas are currently in fourth place on the log table with 19 points, only one point ahead of Western Province with two matches remaining.
The Cheetahs, Sharks and Bulls, however, are above them on the log, meaning a defeat for either team could deal a huge blow to their semi-final hopes.
Griquas have won all of their home games so far this season, while they will be determined to bounce back from their first defeat in five matches last weekend.
Province come off a victory against the Pumas, but with three victories in six matches, they will be under pressure to find their form to keep alive hopes of advancing to the semifinal for their eighth successive season.
In Port Elizabeth, the EP Kings will face the sixth-placed Golden Lions, who find them- selves fighting for survival in the competition. The hosts have not won a match this season, and they will throw everything at the Johannesburg side.
However, the Lions are expected to target the clash for a bonus-point victory because the EP Kings have struggled on defence this season. Should the visitors suffer a defeat, it could dash their semi-final hopes.
The teams registered a 35-35 draw in the Currie Cup qualifiers, but they have won all of their Premier Division matches against the EP Kings dating back to the 1996 season, which should boost their confidence as they look to bounce back from their defeat against log-leaders, the Cheetahs.
Malcolm Marx and Julian Redelinghuys are both back in the red and white for the Golden Lions tomorrow.
Marx is back from Springbok duty while Redelinghuys has recovered from the hamstring injury he sustained in the Springbok win over Argentina in Nelspruit in August.
Other changes upfront as part of the rotation system are Bobby De Wee at lock, Ruan Ackermann and Ruaan Lerm, and among the backs Dillon Smit, Howard Minizi, Koch Marx and Sylvian Mahusa.
Meanwhile, the clash between the EP Kings and Pumas initially scheduled for Sunday, October 2, in Port Elizabeth has been moved forward to Friday, September 30, at 6pm.
The Currie Cup semi-finals and final will be moved back by a week to avoid any potential clashes with the Rugby Championship Test between the Springboks and All Blacks in Durban on Saturday, October 8.
The semi-finals were initially scheduled to be played on October 7-8 respectively, and the final a week later on Saturday, October 15.
The semi-finals will now move to the following weekend, while the Currie Cup final, as well as the SA Rugby Under-19 and Under-21 Championship finals, will all be played on Saturday, October 22. – ANA