The festive franchise rugby season is set to kick off next weekend, with the Stormers, Bulls, Lions and Sharks all resuming action.
There is under a week to go before franchise rugby is back in action, with a stacked festive season schedule on the cards for the Stormers, Bulls, Lions and Sharks over the next two months.
Although the Springboks still have one more match to play on their European tour, against Wales in Cardiff this coming Saturday, all of South Africa’s top franchises will also be in United Rugby Championship (URC) action.
The unbeaten table-topping Stormers will have their work cut out for them as they take on also unbeaten Munster, with the two sides level on 23 points, in a mouthwatering top of the table battle at Thomond Park in Limerick.
A cracking Highveld derby should be one of the games of the weekend, as the Bulls host the Lions at Loftus Versfeld, while the struggling Sharks face a tricky encounter against an unpredictable Connacht team in Galway.
All four SA teams will be desperate to pick up wins on their return to action after a month’s break for the November internationals, as they will want to build up momentum to take into the EPCR Champions and Challenge Cup competitions, which kick off a week later at the start of December.
EPCR action
The Stormers, Bulls and Sharks will be in Champions Cup action, while the Lions will be joined by the Cheetahs in the Challenge Cup, with the first two rounds set to be battled out; the opening round on 6 and 7 December.
The opening Champions Cup round sees the Stormers taking on Aviron Bayonnais in Bayonne, the Bulls hosting Bordeaux Begles at Loftus, and the Sharks fronting up to Stade Toulousain in Toulouse.
In round two, the Stormers battle it out against La Rochelle in Gqeberha, the Sharks take on Saracens at Kings Park, and the Bulls head over to England for their meeting against Northampton Saints.
The Lions start their Challenge Cup campaign by hosting Benetton at Ellis Park, while the Cheetahs are up against Exeter Chiefs in Devon.
Round two sees the Lions travel to England to face Newcastle Red Bulls, and the Cheetahs play their “home game” in the Netherlands, against Stade Francais at the NRCA Stadium in Amsterdam.
The SA teams then get back into URC action a few days before Christmas, with two festive derbies on the cards, as the Stormers host the Lions in Cape Town and the Sharks welcome the Bulls to Durban.
The teams have a week off over Christmas and New Years before getting back under way in January, with URC, Champions and Challenge Cup games set to be battled out over the month.
Next weekend’s SA URC fixtures:
Saturday November 29
Bulls v Lions at Loftus: Kick-off 2pm
Munster v Stormers at Thomond Park: Kick-off 7:30pm
Connacht v Sharks at the Sportsground: Kick-off 9:45pm
