White River Rugby Club will play the most important match in their history tomorrow.

They will face defending Phakisa Premier League champions, Sasol Rugby Club, in the 2019 final at Mbombela Stadium at 16:55, after the Currie Cup match between the Phakisa Pumas and the Cell C Sharks.

Not only is the title of the champion rugby club in Mpumalanga at stake, the winner will earn automatic qualification to the Gold Cup next season. The Gold Cup competition is the premier rugby union club competition in South Africa for non-university teams.

White River and Sasol have faced each other three times this season.

On the opening weekend of the league Sasol won 33-19 at Secunda Stadium. White River claimed victory in the return match on June 1 and then won again at home, 34-27 in the play-off match on July 20.

Both teams know that these three matches count for nothing. All that matters is which team will have the most points on the scoreboards above the north and south stands at Mbombela Stadium when the final whistle is blown tomorrow evening.

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It is a clash between the strongest Highveld and the strongest Lowveld club. The quality of rugby played by both teams this season has been of the highest standard.

White River claimed top place on the log table after the round-robin stage, and Sasol were second.

White River captain, Barend Smit is confident his team is peaking at the right time.

“Every player, I feel, has matured so much in their own position since the first warm-up game, so we are well prepared,” he said on Wednesday. “Both sides are great. Whoever is hungrier and whoever pitches up the day for the game is going to take it.”

Smit is extremely proud of the White River first team. “In my rugby career, this was the first year I have been part of club rugby and it is a great feeling that my first club is White River. No one will understand what it means to get on the field with my teammates. We are going to give our everything,” said Smit.

Sasol captain Francois Jacobs said yesterday, “The three games played during the season were all close, with both teams playing superb rugby at times, but with a final, the atmosphere of the match changes as winning becomes the only objective.

“Our team is well prepared for a tough battle on Saturday, with the players fully committed to training and comfortable with the game plan for the match. It is a great honour and privilege for me to captain the Sasol team. We have a lot of talented players, which makes captaincy effortless.”

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The match promises to be a thriller. Neither team will hold back. The speed White River have out wide might just be the difference.

White River 2nd team will play against Middelburg II in the Premier League second teams’ final, and the club’s third team will face Witbank III in the third teams’ final.

Match times

10:45: White River III vs Witbank III (Mbombela Stadium B field).

12:30: White River II vs Middelburg II (Mbombela Stadium B field).

16:55: White River I vs Sasol I (Mbombela Stadium main field).

White River

15. Gert Botha

14. Nazo Nkala

13. Eldred James

12. Wilmaure Louw

11. Marcelino Marais

10. Barend Smit (c)

9. Junior Kotze

8. Martin Mangwiro

7. Juan Bester

6. Pieter Prinsloo

5. Johannes Jonker

4. Ross O’Mahoney

3. Chris Crous

2. Jacques Taylor

1. Mervin Gilbert

* The White River reserves’ names were not available at the time of publishing.

Sasol

1. Francois Jacobs (c)

2. Lenro Vergottini

3. Mike van Vuuren

4. Lewellyn van der Linde

5. Jandré Mathee

6. Michael Podges

7. Wian Prinsloo

8. Brandon Oliver Potgieter

9. Dalton Smit

10. Dirk Coetzer

11. Berty Visser

12. Jannie van der Merwe

13. Anwar Fillis

14. Jacobus Beyleveldt

15. Marinus van der Merwe

16. Eduard Victor

17. Jannes Lotter

18. Ruan Neethling

19. Dandré Brand

20. Johan van der Merwe

21. Rudolf Pretorius

22. Fanie Booysen