Currie Cup tops fare on last weekend before the storm starts

South African rugby has been going through the calm before the storm. You could argue that has been the case even during the Nations Championship games, with the opener against England being the only exception to the rule that the Springboks were in experimental and preparation mode.

What they were preparing for is the historic first ever edition of Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series, with the All Blacks now in the country and set to be in attendance at a Welcome to the Country event in Cape Town on Friday.

The DHL Stadium is where it all kicks off the following Friday, when the DHL Stormers host the Kiwis in the first tour match, with the All Blacks then set to play the Hollywoodbets Sharks in Durban four days later (Tuesday, 11 August) before moving on to Pretoria for their clash with the Vodacom Bulls, a game that will form a full dress rehearsal for the first test the following week at Ellis Park (22 August).

The Boks will play their final warmup game to the RGR series against Argentina next Saturday, 8 August, in Buenos Aires, so it’s going to be a busy time from here, and compared to the intensity of the tour games and then the four test matches on consecutive Saturdays, with the final one scheduled for Baltimore in the USA, this last weekend before it all kicks off is very definitely the end of the calm before the storm.

JUNIOR BOKS JOIN THE FRAY

As was the case the previous weekend, it is the Carling Currie Cup that tops the local fare, and on the evidence of the games we have seen so far there’s some merit in that old saying that out of chaos comes entertainment.

Not all the teams are well organised and neither have they necessarily been close to the strength they are working towards, with the URC clubs welcoming back Junior Springboks fresh from their Junior World Championship triumph in round three.

Markus Muller will be making his Currie Cup debut a few months after he made his Vodacom URC debut when the Stormers XXIII host the Sharks XV in Cape Town on Saturday afternoon. He will be joined by fellow World Championship winner Danie Kruger and Altus Rabie in making his first ever appearance in the senior domestic competition.

The visitors also have a fair smattering of Junior Boks being introduced in this game, with Luan Giliomee lining up at fullback and three out SA under-20 players coming in on the bench.

Both the coastal teams were outplayed in the second round after getting off to a winning start on the opening weekend so this could, given the short Currie Cup season, be seen as a big moment in terms of determining which of the development teams of the two URC clubs will be best placed to challenge for the trophy this year.

Both clubs have big tour games against the All Blacks to look forward to and we will see when those selections are made which other youngsters are in the mix. Certainly the smart money now should be on Yaqeen Ahmed, who was not selected for the Currie Cup match, wearing the No 10 in next week’s opening RGR tour game.

INJURIES MOUNT FOR GRIQUAS AND BULLS

Champions Suzuki Griquas have meanwhile suffered a double injury setback ahead of Friday night’s central unions derby against the Cheetahs in Kimberley. Cameron Hufke’s season is over after the fullback tore his posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) and meniscus during last week’s victory over the Vodacom Bulls, while winger Dylan Maart is expected to spend several weeks on the sidelines after tearing shoulder ligaments.

It doesn’t end there, with Griquas going into this game against the unbeaten Cheetahs with nine players missing in all. Not that they are alone in having players crocked, with the Bulls XV reporting quite a lengthy list of calamities too.

Last week’s skipper Nama Xaba has been ruled out for the rest of the season with a broken finger, while hooker Shaun Schürmann and centre PA van Niekerk were both forced off early in last Saturday’s 56-26 defeat against Griquas in Kimberley with knee injuries, with coach Phiwe Nomlomo confirming subsequently that neither player will feature again this season.

In addition, No 8 JJ Theron and scrumhalf Neil le Roux have niggles which make them unavailable for their team’s trip to Ellis Park for Saturday’s Gauteng derby. Fullback Devon Williams is also in doubt.

The two unbeaten teams are the Cheetahs and the Sanlam Boland Kavaliers, with the latter fast emerging as everyone’s second favourite team for the thrilling brand of rugby they play. They will bring the curtain down on the weekend, and the calm before the storm, by hosting their third successive Sunday match, with the Airlink Pumas the visitors at Boland Stadium in Wellington.

MATCH INFORMATION:

Suzuki Griquas v Toyota Cheetahs

Date: Friday, 31 July

Venue: Suzuki Stadium, Kimberley

Time: 7pm

Referee: Christopher Allison

Broadcast: SuperSport

DHL Stormers XXIII v Hollywoodbets Sharks XV

Date: Saturday, 1 August

Venue: DHL Stadium, Cape Town

Time: 3pm

Referee: Dylen November