The Bolanders have made a decent start to their 2025 Currie Cup campaign, but now face the Lions.
The Boland Cavaliers have set themselves a lofty goal of challenging for the Currie Cup title by 2027, and key to that will be a strong showing in the current edition being battled out.
The Cavaliers host the Lions in their third match of the competition in Wellington on Sunday (3pm), and it will be their first encounter with one of the “big four” unions in a number of years.
It is thus the perfect opportunity to test where they stand currently, and having enjoyed a solid start to the competition, that began with a bonus point win over the Cheetahs, followed by an entertaining high scoring loss against the Griquas, they head into the game with decent momentum.
“It was nice to start off with a win and we feel we are on track with what we want to achieve. This year it was important to qualify for the Currie Cup, get that experience and then we want to build a team to be good enough to in two years’ time be a contender for the Currie Cup,” said Cavaliers coach Hawies Fourie.
“It’s a process and will take a bit of time. But I am pretty sure that the guys will learn a lot and improve playing in the Currie Cup at a higher level. Playing against quality opposition and players makes you better as well.
“So we will use this experience that we are gaining to our advantage, try and build on that, and just improve the quality and the depth of the team as we go.”
The journey
Fourie explained that they had started their journey a year ago and that they have made steady process so far towards their tough target of challenging for the Currie Cup title, the biggest being qualifying for the competition for the first time since 2016.
“We started off last year with that vision to build the team towards 2027. The first step was to finish in the top four of the SA Cup and qualify for the Currie Cup, which we have done,” said Fourie.
“Our goal now is to play as well as we can and see where we still lack, and need to improve on that. But our main goal is to make sure that we have a really competitive team by 2027.”
Looking towards the Lions match, Fourie admitted that the team was excited to play in front of their home fans for the second time this season, after the incredible atmosphere produced during their stunning win over the Cheetahs.
“I am pretty sure the people will rock up again and come and support the Cavaliers. They waited for nine years to get some Currie Cup rugby in Wellington again. So I am 100% sure they will be behind the team and out in their numbers on Sunday,” said Fourie.
