Currie Cup, Round Six - Teams and Predictions

PREVIEW: For some teams, it is a do-or-die situation to make the play-offs, whilst others will go into Round Six of the Currie Cup with the goal of earning a home semifinal spot.

The weekend’s action kicks off on Friday with a humdinger between the third-placed Pumas and log leaders Griquas.

There’s plenty on the line for both teams, with just five points separating them from their respective log positions.

Griquas could cement a top-two spot and seal a home semifinal berth with a bonus-point win. A defeat, however, would put that dream in jeopardy and place the Pumas in the pound seats to gun for a top-two spot themselves.

Griquas head coach Pieter Bergh highlighted the importance of this clash to ensure they give themselves the best possible chance of retaining the Currie Cup trophy.

“We know how important this fixture is. We want to win the Currie Cup, and to do that we need to give ourselves the chance to finish as high [on the log] as possible and hopefully to get a home play-off.

“We know that if we lose this game, it will be difficult to get a home semifinal, and we also know that should we win, it’s very likely that we’ll get a home play-off match.

“We haven’t looked much at the past. We’ve looked at some technical stuff that we did against the Pumas and what they’ve done against us.

“It’s a big game – they still feel that they have a chance to finish on top of the table and we know we can do the same, but we’re also aware that we can drop out of the play-off race, so this week is massively important for us.”

Bergh conceded that Griquas’ record against the Pumas hasn’t been the best but provided context around those defeats in the SA Cup and Currie Cup tournaments.

“We know that our record against the Pumas hasn’t been great in recent years, but in those defeats our [lack of] discipline let us down.

“Last year in the SA Cup Final we conceded a red card, and in this year’s decider we also conceded a red card.

“Last year in Mbombela we played with 12 players at one stage; otherwise that result could’ve been different.

“These are the kind of things we’ve looked at – our discipline is of utmost importance. We can’t play in Mbombela with 14 or 13 players on the pitch.

“Since our first match this season against the Stormers, our discipline was poor, and the players showed a massive improvement in that department, and hopefully we can keep it up this weekend.”

Following the clash in Mbombela, the action continues at Loftus Versfeld where the Bulls XV will be out to claim their first win of the season against the Stormers XXIII.

The visitors’ season hangs on this result: win and they have a shot of making the top four should they topple the Lions in the final round – lose and the show is over for the Capetonians who failed to make the Currie Cup play-offs since 2021.

Despite not getting the desired results this season, Stormers head coach Tom Dawson-Squibb said he doesn’t feel like it’s too much of a daunting task going to Pretoria with their season on the line and paid respect to the Bulls ahead of their big north-south derby.

“I think some coaches will be quite chilled about the result and say things like ‘it’s part of the process’, but that’s not me; I want to win, and I want the guys to want to win.

“That’s an ingrained thing if you play professional sport. And when you want to win, it brings stress, tension and intensity with it.

“If you’d ask me if I would rather have that intensity of trying to prepare a team for the Bulls, or if I’d prefer chilling at home and lighting a fire at 12.00 pm tomorrow… I’d rather have the way we’re getting right now.

“I mean this when I say I don’t feel daunted at all. We’re really excited, but we know we’ve got a big task ahead of us.

“The Bulls guys will be desperate and hungry. I respect Phiwe [Nomlomo] a lot as a coach and their staff, and I know they’ve got some great players.”

The final clash on Friday sees the Sharks XV welcome the Lions to Woodburn Stadium in Pietermaritzburg.

The Sharks, much like the Stormers, still have a mathematical chance to reach the top four but will in all likelihood require a bonus-point win.

The Lions are better poised, albeit with merely two log points more than their opponents, but also can’t afford to slip up in any way or form.

Sharks head coach Mike Vowles said the team is dedicated to righting the wrongs of last weekend’s defeat to Griquas and getting their season back on track.

“The team is really excited for the opportunity to play in Pietermaritzburg. The city has been a fantastic host to the Sharks in their Currie Cup campaign the past couple of years.

“The supporters came out in their numbers, and the group is really looking forward to being able to entertain the supporters and engaging with them.

“We’re looking to put in a strong performance after the disappointment of last weekend.

“With two home games lined up, we want to finish the competition strong and play an exciting brand and make the Pietermaritzburg community proud.”

He added that the Sharks will give everything to give themselves a shot at making the play-offs despite their low position on the table.

“It’s been a good week. We’ve used the opportunity to do some introspection.

“After the challenge of Kimberley, we’re looking at finishing our campaign on a positive note.

“We are targeting these last two games to finish strong and hopefully give ourselves a shot at getting into the semifinals.

“It’s a big weekend for us, and there’s plenty to play for.”

On Sunday, another mouthwatering clash awaits between the Cheetahs and Boland Kavaliers.

Hawies Fourie will come up against his old side and be keen to prove a point against a Cheetahs team that’s grown as the season progressed.

The Cheetahs, depending on what happens in Mbombela on Friday evening, will want to keep the pressure on Griquas, who currently top the table by virtue of points difference, with both teams entering Round Six on 21 log points.

For Boland, a scalp over the Cheetahs would be a massive boost to secure their second consecutive semifinal in the Currie Cup since their return to the Premier Division last season, and they will hope to go one better and have a home semifinal this time around.

Cheetahs head coach Frans Steyn conceded that their defensive efforts against the Bulls last weekend were below standard but reiterated that it’s not a system issue and that they’ll be better for it against Boland.

“Jacques Fourie [Lions defence coach] once said in a newspaper: ‘We are not on the field anymore, so we can’t make people tackle’.

“So to tell me there’s a problem with our defence to go to Kimberley and just concede two linebreaks against the players Griquas have and a few weeks later we have a problem with our defence? I don’t think so.

“It’s tough, we need to work on it and ensure it doesn’t happen again.”

Steyn is aware of their recent struggles against their next two opponents in the form of Boland and the Pumas and stressed the importance of getting a win on Friday ahead of their final round fixture against Jimmy Stonehouse’s men.

“The next two weeks will be crucial, and I hope everyone realises what’s at stake. If we don’t get log points this weekend then we’ll need to do it in Nelspruit [Mbombela].

“We struggled against Boland, but we also struggled against the Pumas the last couple of years, especially in Mbombela.

“It’s good that we play Boland at home, and all their coaching staff have a lot of friends in Bloemfontein, so there will be a lot of support for them as well.

“If we play well, hopefully we can fill the stadium before the end of the Currie Cup play-offs.”

Steyn added that playing the last match on the weekend isn’t something he is keen on when asked if it would help having a clearer picture for the team to know what they need to do on Sunday, with the other three fixtures taking place on Friday.

“I would’ve preferred to play tomorrow [Thursday] and get the fixture out of the way,” Steyn told Rugby365.

“We’ll see this weekend what works for us and what doesn’t, but I’m never someone who likes to wait and see how other teams played and how it affects us.

“We should pitch up on the day, be physical and get our systems right. We have standards which probably didn’t reflect all that well this past weekend.

“We must still produce some rugby. One of our goals is to fill the Toyota Stadium again one day, and the only way to do that is to top the Currie Cup table, so we must win.”

*See all the teams and predictions below!

Friday, August 21

Pumas v Griquas

(Mbombela Stadium, Mbombela – Kick-off: 15.00; 13.00 GMT)

Prediction:

Rugby365: Griquas by two points

Teams:

Pumas: 15 Jaycee Nel, 14 Darren Adonis, 13 Sango Xamlashe (vice-captain), 12 Wian van Niekerk, 11 Banie Britz, 10 Nevaldo Fleurs, 9 Thomas Bursey, 8 Willie Engelbrecht (captain), 7 Ruwald van der Merwe, 6 Thabo Ndimande, 5 Tiaan de Klerk, 4 JJ Scheepers, 3 Sampie Swiegers, 2 Chyle van Zyl, 1 Etienne Janeke
Replacements: 16 Jan-Henning Campher, 17 Zukisa Sali, 18 Junior Banda, 19 Andre Goedhals, 20 De Wet Marais, 21 Russwill Fredericks, 22 Clinton Swart, 23 Tino Swanepoel

Griquas: 15 Stefan Coetzee, 14 Dylan Maart, 13 Zane Bester, 12 Mnombo Zwelendaba (captain), 11 Gurswin Wehr, 10 George Whitehead, 9 Bobby Alexander, 8 Carl Els, 7 Marco de Witt, 6 Lourens Oosthuizen, 5 Derik Pretorius (captain), 4 Lungisi Mbiko, 3 IG Prinsloo, 2 Tiaan Lange, 1 Leon Lyons
Replacements: 16 Janus Venter, 17 Eddie Davids, 18 Ntobeko Shezi, 19 Carel van der Merwe, 20 Dillon Smith, 21 Jack Hart, 22 Liam Koen, 23 Sako Makata

Referee: Stephan Geldenhuys
Assistant referees: TBC
TMO: TBC

Bulls XV v Stormers XXIII

(Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria – Kick-off: 17.05; 15.05 GMT)

Prediction:

Rugby365: Stormers by seven points

Teams:

Bulls XV: 15 Hakeem Kunene, 14 Marnus Rademeyer, 13 Demitre Erasmus, 12 Pieter van der Merwe, 11 Riyaad Bam, 10 Devon Williams, 9 Keagan Johannes (captain), 8 JJ Theron, 7 Abongile Nonkontwana, 6 Kebotile Maake, 5 Sintu Manjezi, 4 Heinrich Theron, 3 Arno Gustafson, 2 Siphosethu Mnebelele, 1 Dylan Smith.
Replacements: 16 Jon Hobson, 17 Sandi Msengana, 18 Duwan Potgieter, 19 Johnathan Eloff, 20 Chinedu Amadi, 21 Cephas van Biljon, 22 Brooklyn Newman, 23 Christiaan Vlok.

Stormers XXIII: 15 Luke Burger, 14 Joel Leotlela, 13 Markus Muller, 12 Cornel Smit, 11 Mfundo Ndhlovu, 10 Kyle Smith, 9 Ezekiel Ngobeni (captain), 8 Divan Fuller, 7 Louw Nel, 6 Xola Nyali, 5 Luan Botha, 4 Tom Barnard, 3 Herman Lubbe, 2 Vernon Paulo, 1 Mhleli Khuzwayo.
Replacements: 16 Altus Rabe, 17 Hencus van Wyk, 18 Danie Kruger, 19 Dylan de Leeuw, 20 Eric Basson, 21 Tiaan Fourie, 22 Dominic Malgas, 23 Gino Cupido.

Referee: Hanru van Rooyen
Assistant referees: TBC
TMO: TBC

Sharks XV v Lions

(Woodburn Stadium, Pietermaritzburg – Kick-off: 19.15; 17.15 GMT)

Prediction:

Rugby365: Lions by eight points

Teams:

Sharks XV: 15 Luan Giliomee, 14 Christie Grobbelaar, 13 Lyle Matthews, 12 Janco Purchase, 11 Khuthi Rasivhaga, 10 Tim Swiel, 9 Ross Braude (captain), 8 Tino Mavesere, 7 Meno Barnard, 6 Jean-Henri Smit, 5 Deon Slabbert, 4 Johan Momsen, 3 Simphiwe Ngobese, 2 Liam van Wyk, 1 Phiwayinkosi Kubheka
Replacements: 16 Jacques Marais, 17 Jaco du Toit, 18 Dian Heunis, 19 Danio Botha, 20 Wasi Vyambwera, 21 Juan Loots, 22 Siya Masuku, 23 Albie Bester

Lions:15 Gilermo Mentoe, 14 Keagan Smith, 13 Likhona Finca, 12 Rynhardt Jonker, 11 Latica Nela, 10 Sam Francis, 9 Zian Cilliers, 8 Renzo du Plessis, 7 Jarod Cairns (captain), 6 Thando Biyela, 5 JD Hattingh, 4 Siba Qoma, 3 Conraad van Vuuren, 2 Armand Combrinck, 1 Juan Schoeman.
Replacements: 16 Mahle Sithole, 17 Liyema Ntshanga, 18 Siya Dube, 19 Dylan Sjoblom, 20 Vuyo Gwiji, 21 Asad Moos, 22 Ethan Adams, 23 Luke Cannon.

Referee: Juan de Bod
Assistant referees: TBC
TMO: TBC

Sunday, August 23

Cheetahs v Boland Kavaliers

(Toyota Stadium, Bloemfontein – Kick-off: 15.00; 13.00 GMT)

Prediction:

Rugby365: Cheetahs by five points

Teams:

Cheetahs: 15 Clayton Blommetjies, 14 Michael Annies, 13 Carel-Jan Coetzee, 12 Zander du Plessis, 11 Prince Nkabinde, 10 Tiaan Swanepoel, 9 Faf de Klerk, 8 Neels Volschenck (captain), 7 Sisonke Vumazonke, 6 Ramon Uys, 5 Victor Sekekete, 4 Simon Muller, 3 Frankie Dos Reis, 2 Juan Smal, 1 Tebogo Nkosi
Replacements: 16 Stefan Venter, 17 Dux Manyama, 18 John-Kelly Okonkwo, 19 Arno van der Merwe, 20 Pierre Uys, 21 Rewan Kruger, 22 Cohen Jasper, 23 Jooste Nel

Boland Kavaliers: 15 Domenic Smit, 14 Cornell Engelbrecht, 13 Lunathi Nxele, 12 Chris Smit, 11 Jayden Bantom, 10 Ashlon Davids, 9 Godlen Masimla, 8 Sibusiso Sangweni, 7 Kwanda Dimaza, 6 Gift Dlamini, 5 Marlyn Williams, 4 Johnré Stopforth, 3 Heiko Pohlmann, 2 Joshua Eras, 1 Alistair Vermaak
Replacements: 16 Sidney Tobias, 17 Dewald Maritz, 18 Mthokozisi Gumede, 19 Jeandre Leonard, 20 Michael Benadie, 21 Thurlow Marsh, 22 Bentley Geldenhuys, 23 James Tedder

Referee: Morne Ferreira
Assistant referees: Dylen November, Stiaan Marx
TMO: Marius van der Westhuizen