VIDEO: The 'huge desire' inside WP camp
IN THE SPOTLIGHT: The Western Province camp believes that Newlands deserves to host one last Currie Cup semifinal.
The news of the Western Province Rugby Union relocating from Newlands to Greenpoint Stadium has been well documented for the last two years.
And with good reason.
The iconic stadium has been part of not only South African rugby but Cape Town folklore for more than a century.
Thus securing the right to host a semifinal will be the perfect farewell.
However, Western Province will have to overcome the Sharks to book a home semifinal spot.
“There is a huge desire to play a home semifinal at Newlands,” WP assistant coach Labeeb Levy told reporters during a virtual press conference on Tuesday.
“There has been so much talk of the last game at Newlands and the reality is if we not successful this weekend we will never play at Newlands again – and that’s the harsh reality for the players”
He added: “Usually the narrative has been driven by the coaches but this week it was the players who were actually driving it, which is excellent.”
The Sharks bounced back from back-to-back defeats with a comfortable 47-19 win over Griquas, which was certainly a huge morale boost for the Durban side.
To make things more challenging for the Capetonians the Sharks have been boosted by the return of Aphelele Fassi, while the pack is expecting the return of Springbok Thomas du Toit ahead of the important Newlands showdown.
Commenting on the threat the Sharks pose, Levy said: “We do expect Du Toit to return for the Sharks and obviously he will increase their chances to match us in the pack.
“Having said that, our forwards are confident and I think if we follow our processes and continue with what we have been doing we can dominate them.”
The Western Province will face the Sharks in their final round clash in Cape Town on Saturday.
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