Ashfak Mohamed
ANYONE for a bit of high-class rugby this weekend in Cape Town? How about soccer, or perhaps cricket?
Well, locals can watch major events in all three sports in the Mother City this weekend as the Western Cape takes on Gauteng.
In rugby, it’s the big north-south derby between Western Province and the Blue Bulls at Newlands Stadium tomorrow (5pm kickoff) in the Currie Cup semi-finals, with the Streeptruie hunting revenge after they were on the losing side in their last Newlands semi-final against the Pretoria team in 2009.
Then the action shifts to Boland Park in Paarl on Sunday morning as the Cape Cobras face the Highveld Lions in the limited-over 1-Day Cup (10am start).
And just to round it out, Ajax Cape Town square off with Soweto giants Kaizer Chiefs in a top-of-the-table PSL soccer clash at the Cape Town Stadium on Sunday afternoon at 3.30pm.
The biggest crowds are likely to be at Newlands and Cape Town Stadium for the rugby and soccer. WP are expected to play in front of about 35 000 people, while there could be a similar number for the PSL match as the weather forecast is favourable too, with a maximum temperature of 24°C and sunny conditions predicted for both tomorrow and Sunday.
WP captain Juan de Jongh has urged his teammates to not allow the pressure of the occasion to affect their performance. “I must say there is a big hype in the squad. It’s important to keep the fun and the vibe going, and not put too much stress and pressure on ourselves for the semi-finals,” the Springbok centre said.
Province finished the league season on top of the Currie Cup standings, and coach Allister Coetzee says such big days are what they prepare for. “It’s great to be at Newlands. It’s great to play in front of 30 000-plus, no doubt about it, probably 40 000. And a massive north-south derby yet again, what more can you ask for in Currie Cup rugby? That’s why we train and we live in this business,” he said.
“We are embracing the pressure, we understand there’s pressure – it’s not something we can hide from. We know the Bulls are coming here thinking that the pressure is all on us. (But) We’ve learnt from previous playoffs and hopefully we can show it out there. Championship sides are looking for the big days, being under pressure and being able to respond.”