Currie Cup, Round Four - Teams and Predictions

PREVIEW: The Bulls will head into their Currie Cup Round Four clash against old foes Western Province as heavy favourites after an unbeaten start to their campaign.

The Bulls are level on points (13) with the Lions at the top of the standings and momentum will be on their side against John Dobson’s team.

In Round One, the Pretoria side recorded a 30-25 win over their rivals in Cape Town and they followed that up with victories over the Griffons and Cheetahs.

Bulls mentor Phiwe Nomlomo says his team started the week with a lot of confidence after their Round Three win against the defending champions Cheetahs.

However, they are under no illusion that it will be hard work to beat the Capetonians.

“The Cheetahs are a classy and well-coached outfit, so it was never going to be an easy outing, but I am chuffed at how we turned out and managed the game,” said Nomlomo.

“We were good on defence with everyone putting their bodies on the line.

“All that credit must also go to Jean [Tiedt] who has been working hard with the lads.

“We are in a good place as a team because we get the wins and still walk away feeling like we could have done better.

“We have to applaud that attitude from our players.”

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Nomlomo adds that his side is working hard to perfect their game and calls on supporters to play their player-24 role against an old enemy.

“Our focus now is fully on Province and making sure that we prepare well for what will be a tough outing,” said Nomlomo.

“I think because things went our way in Round One, they will want to come here and try to upstage us, but we will be ready and I hope our fans will be in the stands serving as our super player 24, giving us an added home ground advantage.”

Nomolomo added: “Looking at our overall campaign, we still have a couple of things to work on because we want to be more clinical in all aspects of our game.

“We are always evolving as a team and have that desire to become a ruthless outfit and this is another week where we can take a step towards that.”

Western Province hooker JJ Kotze said the rivalry between the two teams is still strong no matter which competition they are playing in.

“It’s always tough against the Bulls, even if it’s a Currie Cup [match].

“It can even be a warm-up game at the Danie Craven [Stadium], it will always be tough because it is that Province-Bulls derby.

“In terms of the expectations for the weekend, we put that on ourselves.

“We don’t put the expectation on the result or the Bulls. We put the expectations on ourselves. We drive our own standards.”

The Lions will be looking to build on their good early-season form against the struggling Sharks in Saturday’s other match.

However, they do not fall into the trap of underestimating their opponents.

“They are a professional union, so we expect them to be at their best this weekend,” said Lions hooker Jaco Visagie.

“Unfortunately, they have lost three, so they will be desperate.

“However, we prepped for it with all the footage we have and now we must just pitch on Saturday.”

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The Lions also have a few returning Springboks in their camp.

“It’s good to have them back,” Visagie told @rugby365com.

“Ruan [Venter] is going to play for us and Quan [Horn] was part of the opposition team that prepped us [in training].

“Having them in your camp just elevates the whole union. They come back with the knowledge they got from the Springboks.”

Sharks head coach JP Pietersen has included a few Junior Springboks in his starting XV and he is eager to see how they will adapt to this level.

“We are very excited to welcome back Batho [Hlekani], Jurenzo [Julius] and Lili [Bester],” said Pietersen.

“The nice thing about them is that they are rugby-ready and we want to blood youngsters during this Currie Cup campaign.

“It’s a great opportunity for Jurenzo and Lili to play together [in the midfield] to see if they can make the step up and see if they can go forward into the URC.

“Jurenzo has been the outstanding junior player this year. He looks strong and fast, so I am excited to have him back in the team.”

The Cheetahs will face the Griffons in a Free State derby in Welkom in the round’s opening fixture on Friday.

The visitors will be looking to bounce back after their defeat to the Bulls in Pretoria last weekend.

“It’s about putting it behind you and learning from your mistakes,” said Cheetahs head coach Izak van der Westhuizen.

“We had a good long chat about that over the last couple of days and we parked it, and we know what we need to fix.”

The last time they visited Welkom, the Cheetahs suffered a shock 33-36 defeat in the SA Cup.

“It’s still a motivating factor for us,” Van der Westhuizen added. “A lot of the guys were there when it happened and they want to fix it and play to the best of their abilities.”

Meanwhile, Sunday will be the next chapter in the rivalry between the Pumas and Griquas.

Those two teams battled it out in the Currie Cup Final two years ago with the Pumas coming out on top.

It was a different story in the SA Cup Final this year when Griquas claimed the silverware.

The teams also met in Round One with the Pumas winning that encounter 44-24 in Kimberley

“It will be the fourth time we play against each other in less than three months,” Griquas head coach Pieter Bergh told @rugby365com.

“We’ve got similar playing budgets. We both want to play at a higher level and we are always fighting above our weight.

“I think after the Round One game here in Kimberly, the players are really looking forward to this match.

“They know we were under par that day and we believe we are good enough to go to Nelspruit and beat them.

“I really believe that the players will be up for it. I don’t think we were up for Round One and we have to be for this week.

“When you go to Nelspruit, you know it is going to be tough. It’s a big game.

“If we beat them, we can go above them on the log. It’s a nice rivalry to have and it is a game we are looking forward to.”

See below for Round Four’s teams and predictions!

Friday, July 26:

Griffons v Cheetahs
(North West Stadium, Welkom – Kick-off: 15.00; 13.00 GMT)

Prediction

@rugby365com: Cheetahs by 40 points.

Teams:

Griffons: 15 Kyle Cyster, 14 Qamani Kota, 13 Keanu Vers, 12 Robbie Petzer, 11 Gurswin Wehr, 10 Duan Pretorius (captain), 9 Cheslin Arendse, 8 Orateng Koikanyang, 7 Rian Olivier, 6 Thato Mavundla, 5 Matthew Gray, 4 Joshua Paris, 3 Edwin Nxumalo, 2 Willem van der Hever, 1 Xolani Jacobs.
Replacements: 16 Chadley Wenn, 17 Mthokozisi Gumede, 18 Moango Ngundue, 19 Curtly Thomas, 20 Jared Kruger, 21 David Bunduki, 22 Keegan Schaefer, 23 Gilroy Philander.

Cheetahs: 15 Cohen Jasper, 14 Michael Annies, 13 Carel-Jan Coetzee, 12 Reinhardt Fortuin, 11 Prince Nkabinde, 10 Ethan Wentzel, 9 Rewan Kruger (captain), 8 Neels Volschenk, 7 Friedle Olivier, 6 Daniel Maartens, 5 Carl Wegner, 4 Pieter Jansen van Vuren, 3 Aranos Coetzee, 2 Corne Fourie, 1 Schalk Ferreira.
Replacements: 16 Vernon Paulo, 17 Cameron Dawson, 18 Hencus van Wyk, 19 Mzwanele Zito, 20 Pierre-Raymond Uys, 21 Ruben de Haas, 22 Abner van Reenen, 23 Munier Hartzenberg.

Referee: Sean Muller
Assistant referees: Local
TMO: Ben Crouse

Saturday, July 27:

Lions v Sharks
(Ellis Park, Johannesburg – Kick-off: 15.00; 13.00 GMT)

Prediction

@rugby365com: Lions by 14 points.

Teams:

Lions: 15 Gianni Lombard, 14 Rabz Maxwane, 13 Manuel Rass, 12 Rynhardt Jonker, 11 Kelly Mpeku, 10 Sam Francis, 9 Nico Steyn, 8 Ruhan Straeuli, 7 Ruan Venter, 6 Jarod Cairns, 5 Ruben Schoeman, 4 Raynard Roets, 3 Conrad van Vuuren, 2 Jaco Visagie (captain), 1 Morgan Naude.
Replacements: 16 Morne Brandon, 17 SJ Kotze, 18 RF Schoeman, 19 Etienne Oosthuizen, 20 Luca Ribbens, 21 Renzo du Plessis, 22 Layton Horn, 23 Zander du Plessis.

Sharks: 15 Hakeem Kunene, 14 Yaw Penxe, 13 Lili Bester, 12 Jurenzo Julius, 11 Jaco Williams, 10 Lionel Cronje, 9 Bradley Davids, 8 Nick Hatton (captain), 7 Jannes Potgieter, 6 Siya Ningiza, 5 Reniel Hugo, 4 Batho Hlekani, 3 Mawande Mdanda, 2 Daniel Jooste, 1 Abraham Reyneke.
Replacements: 16 Bryce Calvert, 17 Dian Bleuler, 18 Kabous Bezuidenhout, 19 Hennie Sieberhagen, 20 Tino Mavesere, 21 Tiaan Meyer, 22 Scott Nel, 23 Eduan Keyter.

Referee: Griffin Colby
Assistant referees: Local
TMO: Marius van der Westhuizen

Bulls v Western Province
(Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria – Kick-off: 17.15; 15.15 GMT)

Prediction

@rugby365com: Bulls by nine points.

Teams:

Bull: 15 Boeta Chamberlain, 14 Sergeal Petersen, 13 Aphiwe Dyantyi, 12 Chris Barend Smit, 11 Stravino Jacobs, 10 Jaco van der Walt, 9 Izak Burger, 8 Celimpilo Gumede, 7 Merwe Olivier, 6 Nizaam Carr (captain), 5 JF van Heerden, 4 Cobus Wiese, 3 Khuthazani Mchunu, 2 Joe van Zyl, 1 Dylan Smith.
Replacements: 16 Juann Else, 17 Jacques van Rooyen, 18 Francois Klopper, 19 Jannes Kirsten, 20 Sintu Manjezi, 21 Keagan Johannes, 22 Lionel Mapoe, 23 Nama Xaba.

Western Province: 15 Clayton Blommetjies, 14 Courtnall Skosan, 13 Wandisile Simelane, 12 Jonathan Roche, 11 Angelo Davids, 10 Jurie Matthee, 9 Imad Khan, 8 Willie Engelbrecht (captain), 7 Divan Fuller, 6 Paul de Villiers, 5 Gary Porter, 4 Hendre Stassen, 3 Sazi Sandi, 2 JJ Kotze, 1 Lizo Gqoboka.
Replacements: 16 Scarra Ntubeni, 17 Vernon Matongo, 18 Corne Weilbach, 19 Andre Goedhuis, 20 CJ Velleman, 21 Labib Kannemeyer, 22 Damian Markus, 23 Luke Burger.

Referee: Aimee Barret Theron
Assistant referees: Local
TMO: Quinton Immelman

Sunday, July 28:

Pumas v Griquas
(Mbombela Stadium, Nelspruit – Kick-off: 14.00; 12.00 GMT)

Prediction

@rugby365com: Pumas by six points.

Teams:

Pumas: 15 Stefan Coetzee, 14 Darren Adonis, 13 De-an Ackermann, 12 Clinton Swart, 11 Phiko Sobahle, 10 Danrich Visagie, 9 Ross Braude, 8 Kwanda Dimaza, 7 Ruwald van der Merwe, 6 Ntsika Fisanti, 5 Deon Slabbert, 4 Jeandre Leonard, 3 Sampie Swiegers, 2 Eduan Swart (captain), 1 Etienne Janeke.
Replacements: 16 Darnell Osuagwu, 17 Stephan de Jager, 18 Dewald Maritz, 19 Malembe Mpofu, 20 Andre Fouche, 21 Godlen Masimla, 22 Wian van Niekerk, 23 Lundi Msenge.

Griquas: 15 Cameron Hufke, 14 Dylan Maart, 13 Sango Xamlashe, 12 Mnombo Zwelendaba, 11 Sako Makata, 10 Lubabalo Dobela, 9 Thomas Bursey, 8 Hanru Sirgel, 7 Marco de Witt, 6 Stephan Smit (captain), 5 Derik Pretorius, 4 Athenkosi Khetani, 3 Cebo Dlamini, 2 Janco Uys, 1 Leon Lyons.
Replacements: 16 Gustav du Rand, 17 Eddie Davids, 18 Njabulo Gumede, 19 Dylan Sjoblom, 20 Thabo Ndimandse, 21 Gusdtav Erlank, 22 Bobby Alexander, 23 Zinedine Robinson.

Referee: Christopher Allison
Assistant referees: Local
TMO: Marius Jonker

Photo credit: @WP_RUGBY