The Cavaliers, Cheetahs, Pumas and Griquas have been in superb form so far in the Currie Cup and are making the competition interesting.
The four smaller unions will be chasing more Currie Cup glory as they look to repeat their impressive feat of beating the country’s “big four” for a second consecutive weekend in the competition.
The Griquas, Pumas, Cheetahs and Boland Cavaliers are all at home, hosting the “big four” of the Sharks, Lions, Western Province and Bulls respectively, on what should be another cracking weekend of action.
The two box office games should be Sunday’s clash between the Cavaliers and Bulls in Wellington, and Saturday’s meeting between the Pumas and Lions in Mbombela.
The log is currently extremely congested, with only the bottom dwelling Western Province, without a point, and the Sharks on one, away from the crowd, propping up the table.
The other six teams are stuck together, with the Pumas top, Cheetahs second and Cavaliers third, all on 11 points, followed by the Bulls, Lions and Griquas, all on 10.
Hawies Fourie’s Cavaliers, have been a breath of fresh air on their first appearance in the Currie Cup since 2016, will be aiming to make it a Highveld double, after they stunned the Lions 29-10 at home last weekend, and will now try to best the Bulls.
Bounce back
The Pretoria side will however be desperate to bounce back from their surprise 41-7 thumping by the Pumas at Loftus, and will want to get back to winning ways to get themselves back on track.
The same can be said for the Lions after they were also surprisingly brushed aside, having made a similarly strong start to the competition as the Bulls, which had led to both being considered favourites, but are now in an almighty battle for the top four.
They will however have their work cut out for them against the high flying Pumas, who seem to have recovered from their second game blip, when they slipped up against the Cheetahs, and they will want to pick up a good win in front of their home fans.
The Griquas, on Friday in Kimberley, and Cheetahs, on Saturday in Bloemfontein, will be looking to continue taking advantage of the struggling Sharks and Western Province respectively, and pick up some valuable log points.
The two coastal sides have largely backed youth and inexperience for the competition, and that has led to them battling, with both on a three game losing streak, and they will find it tough to break that against their inland rivals.
Weekend Fixtures
Friday
Griquas v Sharks at Griqua Park: Kick-off 3pm
Saturday
Pumas v Lions at Mbombela Stadium: Kick-off 2pm
Cheetahs v Western Province at Free State Stadium: Kick-off 2pm
Sunday
Boland v Bulls at Boland Park: Kick-off 3pm
