Currie Cup, Round Three - Teams and Predictions

PREVIEW: Round Three of the Currie Cup serves up four intriguing derbies this weekend, headlined by Friday night’s clash in Kimberley where defending champions Griquas welcome the unbeaten Cheetahs.

Saturday features two fixtures before the round concludes on Sunday in Wellington.

The Stormers host the Sharks at DHL Stadium in Cape Town on Saturday, before the Lions take on the Bulls in the Jukskei Derby at UJ Stadium.

Sunday’s action wraps up at Boland Stadium, where Boland host the Pumas.

The unbeaten Cheetahs arrive in Kimberley sitting atop the standings with a perfect 10 points after opening victories over the Lions (29-27) and Sharks (43-21).

Standing in their way are fourth-placed Griquas, who bounced back from a narrow opening-round defeat to the Stormers by thrashing the Bulls 56-26 in front of their home supporters.

Pieter Bergh’s side has enjoyed the upper hand in recent meetings, winning three of the last five clashes, including last season’s convincing 25-5 semifinal victory. Kimberley has become one of the toughest places to visit in the Currie Cup, setting the stage for another fierce battle.

Saturday opens with another fierce coastal derby as the Stormers look to bounce back from last weekend’s humbling 3-41 defeat to Boland.

The Cape side opened their campaign with a hard-fought win over Griquas before suffering one of their heaviest recent Currie Cup defeats.

The Sharks also head into the clash with one win and one loss. They edged the Pumas 26-24 away from home before being outplayed by the Cheetahs in Bloemfontein.

Recent history favours the visitors, who have won the last two meetings between the sides. The Stormers’ last victory over the Sharks came in Cape Town during the 2023 campaign.

The Gauteng derby promises another entertaining contest as the Lions welcome the Bulls to Johannesburg.

The Lions recovered from their narrow opening defeat to the Cheetahs by producing an outstanding attacking display to beat the Pumas 52-29, scoring seven tries in the process.

The Bulls, meanwhile, are still searching for their first win after defeats to Boland and Griquas. Having conceded 80 points across their opening two matches, they face another stern examination against one of the competition’s most dangerous attacking teams.

The final match of the weekend sees one of the competition’s early surprise packages host a side desperate to get off the mark.

Boland have made an outstanding start to the season, collecting nine points from successive home victories over the Bulls and Stormers. Hawies Fourie’s side has combined attacking flair with outstanding defence, conceding just 13 points in two matches.

The Pumas, traditionally among the Currie Cup’s strongest teams, have endured a frustrating start after narrow defeats to the Sharks and Lions.

With confidence high in Wellington and the visitors searching for their first victory, Sunday’s encounter promises another fascinating contest as Round Three draws to a close.

*See all the teams and predictions below!

Friday, July 31

Griquas vs Cheetahs
(Suzuki Stadium, Kimberley – Kick-off 17.00 SAST; 15.00 GMT)

Prediction:

@Rugby365: Cheetahs by 10 points

Teams:

Griquas: 15 Stefan Coetzee, 14 Connor Mahoney, 13 Zane Bester, 12 Mnombo Zwelendaba, 11 Gurswin Wehr, 10 George Whitehead, 9 Bobby Alexander, 8 Carl Els, 7 Marco de Witt, 6 Lourens Oosthuizen, 5 Albert Liebenberg (captain), 4 Lungisi Mbiko, 3 IG Prinsloo, 2 Tiaan Lange, 1 Leon Lyons.
Replacements: 16 Janus Venter (Griquas debut), 17 Corne Lavagna, 18 Ntobeko Shezi, 19 Carel van der Merwe, 20 Phumzile Maqondwana, 21 Jack Hart (Currie Cup debut), 22 Damian Markus, 23 Sako Makata.

Cheetahs:15 Henry Immelman, 14 Cohen Jasper, 13 Carel Jan Coetzee, 12 Jooste Nel, 11 Prince Nkabinde, 10 Ethan Wentzel, 9 Rewan Kruger, 8 Neels Volschenk, 7 Juan Venter, 6 Ramon Uys, 5 Victor Sekekete (captain), 4 Simon Miller, 3 Frankie Dos Reis, 2 Juan Smal, 1 Tebogo Nkosi.
Replacements: 16 Marko Janse van Rensburg, 17 Tielman Niewoudt, 18 Ben Pitout, 19 Daniel Maartens, 20 Sisonke Vumazonke, 21 Faf de Klerk, 22 Jaco van der Walt, 23 Michael Annies

Referee: Christopher Allison

Stormers XXIII vs Sharks XV
(DHL Stadium, Cape Town – Kick-off: 15.00 SAST; 13.00 GMT)

Prediction:

@Rugby365: Sharks by eight points

Teams:

Sharks XV: 15 Luan Gilliomee, 14 Christie Grobbelaar, 13 Marnus Potgieter, 12 Janco Purchase, 11 Lyle Matthews, 10 Tim Swiel, 9 Ross Braude, 8 Thomas Dyer (captain), 7 Danio Botha, 6 Luaan Olivier, 5 Deon Slabbert, 4 Johan Momsen, 3 Simphiwe Ngobese, 2 Bryce Calvert, 1 Cameron Dawson.
Replacements: 16 Liam van Wyk, 17 Phiwayinkosi “Rambo” Kubheka, 18 Lee-Marvin Mazibuko, 19 Hanu Pieterse, 20 Jean-Henri Smit, 21 Juan Loots, 22 Albie Bester, 23 Khuthi Rasivhaga.

Stormers XXIII: 15 Dylan Miller, 14 Suleiman Hartzenberg, 13 Markus Muller, 12 Josh Boulle, 11 Mfundo Ndhlovu, 10 Kyle Smith, 9 Stefan Ungerer (captain), 8 Wandile Mlaba, 7 Louw Nel, 6 Keke Morabe, 5 Gary Porter, 4 Tom Barnard, 3 Herman Lubbe, 2 Vernon Paulo, 1 Hencus van Wyk.
Replacements: 16 Altus Rabe, 17 Mhleli Khuzwayo, 18 Danie Kruger, 19 Gerbrandt Grobler, 20 Xola Nyali, 21 Ezekiel Ngobeni, 22 Gino Cupido, 23 Kian Davis.

Referee: Dylen November

Saturday, August 1

Lions vs Bulls XV
(UJ Stadium, Johannesburg – Kick-off: 17.05 SAST; 15.05 GMT)

Prediction:

@Rugby365: Lions by seven points

Teams:

Lions: 15 Gilermo Mentoe, 14 Keagan Smith, 13 Likhona Finca, 12 Rynhardt Jonker, 11 Rabz Maxwane, 10 Sam Francis, 9 Asad Moos, 8 Morne Venter, 7 Jarod Cairns, 6 Thando Biyela, 5 Ruan Delport (captain), 4 Dylan Sjoblom, 3 Conraad van Vuuren, 2 Mahle Sithole, 1 Morgan Naude.
Replacements:16 Ruan Welman, 17 Cecil Parsons, 18 Ruan Swart, 19 Marco Ferreira, 20 Renzo du Plessis, 21 Zian Cilliers, 22 Matthew Coetzee, 23 Exauce Kevani.

Bulls: 15 Devon Williams, 14 Riyaad Bam, 13 Hakeem Kunene, 12 Christiaan Viok, 11 Lindsey Jansen, 10 Keagan Johannes, 9 Hendre Schoeman, 8 Thomas Beling, 7 Heinrich Theron, 6 Kebotile Maake, 5 Nicolaas Janse van Rensburg (captain), 4 Sintu Manjezi, 3 Dian Coetzee, 2 Jaundre Schoeman, 1 Damian Baker.
Replacements: 16 Siphosethu Mnebelele, 17 Dylan Smith, 18 Jean Erasmus, 19 Johnathan Eloff, 20 Abongile Nonkontwana, 21 Cephas van Biljon, 22 Aka Boqwane, 23 Lavela Pongolo

Referee: Juan de Bod

Boland vs Pumas
(Boland Stadium, Wellington – Kick-off: 15.00 SAST; 13.00 GMT)

Prediction:

@Rugby365: Boland by four points

Teams:

Boland: 15 James Tedder, 14 Xavier Mitchell, 13 Lunathi Nxele, 12 Jurick Lewis, 11 Jayden Bantom, 10 Chris Smit, 9 Louis Schreuder, 8 Thurlow Marsh (c), 7 Kwanda Dimaza, 6 Gift Dlamini, 5 Marlyn Williams, 4 Jeandré Leonard, 3 Dayan van der Westhuizen, 2 Llewellyn Classen, 1 Mthokozisi Gumede
Replacements: 16 Darnell Osuagwu, 17 Dewald Maritz, 18 Heiko Pohlmann, 19 Johnré Stopforth, 20 Taine Booysen, 21 Chriswill September, 22 Ashlon Davids, 23 Domenic Smit

Pumas:15 Jaycee Nel, 14 Alfonso Isaacs, 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 Ntsika Fisanti, 5 Tiaan de Klerk, 4 JJ Scheepers, 3 Sampie Swiegers, 2 Chyle van Zyl, 1 Etienne Janeke.
Replacements: 16 Jan-Henning Campher, 17 Kudzwai Dube, 18 Junior Banda, 19 Stephan Krugel, 20 Thabo Ndimande, 21 Russwill Fredericks, 22 Troy Delport, 23 Darren Adonis

Referee: Morne Ferreira