Lions begin defence with Kimberley trip
Griquas finished the recent Currie Cup Qualifying tournament as the top qualifying team with 11 wins from 14 matches. Boland Cavaliers and the Pumas are the other two teams who have booked their places in this year's Premier Division.
Western Province, Blue Bulls, Golden Lions, Eastern Province Kings and the Sharks all automatically qualified for this year's tournament because of their Super Rugby status.
Western Province, who finished on top of the Qualifying standings, begin their campaign with mouth-watering encounter against the Blue Bulls in Pretoria, while the Sharks will travel to Nelspruit to face the Pumas.
The tournament kicks off with Boland hosting the Free State Cheetahs in Wellington on August 5.
The Eastern Province Kings have a bye in Round One.
Click here for 2016 fixture list and times!
