CURRIE CUP: Tough challenges good for youthful coastal teams

It would be easy to trot out the expected line that it is the two coastal teams who are under the most pressure in this weekend’s round of the Carling Currie Cup, but given the role that the domestic competition is playing in developing young players, that really shouldn’t be the case.

Both DHL Western Province and the Hollywoodbets Sharks are close to being age-group teams currently, and while neither of the two teams are in the top four and qualification for the playoffs will start to become distant if they lose now, winning the competition surely isn’t the overriding aim for either side.

The context of the Currie Cup as it is now that the top unions are effectively fielding third or even fourth-choice teams was highlighted by happenings on the Cape rugby front this past week. First, there was the news that star No 8 Evan Roos has been ruled out for a significant period of time. Then came the confirmation that Dave Ewers, an experienced player who was a legend at Exeter Chiefs and won the double of the Champions Cup and Premiership with that team in 2020, had been recruited to bolster the Stormers’ resources.

The kick-off to the next Vodacom United Rugby Championship season is now a month and a half away and that really has to be the focus. Of course, most of the top Stormers loose-forwards aren’t playing in the Currie Cup, and in their absence, this is an opportunity for the other players to put in notice that they can challenge for a place in the URC plans.

OPPORTUNITY FOR GAME TIME

With the Sharks set to start the new season without their phalanx of Springboks because the first few rounds clash with the Castle Lager Rugby Championship, it is the same with the young Sharks players who were so impressive in fighting back to draw against the Airlink Pumas in Mbombela last week.

The likes of 20-year-old Jurenzo Julius must surely come into contention for URC game time if they continue the promise they’ve shown in the Currie Cup.

Of course, there’s another angle to the Currie Cup presently, which is that it offers an opportunity for injured Boks to get game time before hopefully being returned to the national squad. Last week it was prop Trevor Nyakane who was availed of that opportunity, this week it is scrumhalf Jaden Hendrikse who will get his first game time in quite a while in what could be an entertaining clash with Suzuki Griquas in Durban on Sunday.

💥Carling Currie Cup Team Release💥

Your starting Hollywoodbets Sharks XV for Sunday’s Carling Currie Cup clash with the Suzuki Griquas in Durban 🙌

Read the full team release article on https://t.co/RRpGrpZpYv#CarlingCurrieCup #SHAvGRI pic.twitter.com/SUIwa3OhjR

— The Sharks (@SharksRugby) August 8, 2024

WP have given a first start to Blitzbok star Justin Geduld for Saturday evening’s plum home clash with the Toyota Cheetahs and it is in keeping with their selections in general, with experimentation and development of youth uppermost in Stormers director of rugby John Dobson’s mind.

He and his players, like JP Pietersen and by extension franchise coach John Plumtree and the players in Durban, should be looking forward to the challenge of playing a strong team like the Cheetahs with contention for playoff spots on the line.

It means there is pressure that is good for their development, but it is positive pressure in the sense that neither team really has anything to lose. Instead, there is plenty to gain from the development angle.

The Bulls will feel the same way as they prepare to host Novavit Griffons, who they should beat without having to raise a sweat, while the Fidelity ADT Lions host an Airlink Pumas side that, like the other smaller unions, probably has more focus on that famous old golden trophy and will have revenge on their minds after their surprising humiliation at the hands of the Lions a few weeks back.

The result should certainly matter more for Jimmy Stonehouse’s men than it should for the teams representing unions that are URC franchises. On that note, one team that should be feeling intense pressure is Griquas, who have been well below the standard they set in previous seasons. They will be desperate to repeat at Hollywoodbets Kings Park the win they achieved against the Sharks in Kimberley at the start of the competition.

CARLING CURRIE CUP FIXTURES

Fidelity ADT Lions v Airlink Pumas (Johannesburg, Saturday 15.00)

Vodacom Blue Bulls v Novavit Griffons (Pretoria, Saturday 17.05)

DHL Western Province v Toyota Cheetahs (Cape Town, Saturday 19.10)

Hollywoodbets Sharks v Suzuki Griquas (Durban, Sunday 15.00)