It’s increasingly likely Western Province and the Lions will finish in the top two places, with the real fight now between four teams seeking the other two semi-final spots.
That’s the state of affairs in the Currie Cup with three rounds remaining before the knockout games get under way.
Western Province, thanks to a comfortable win over Griquas on Saturday, remain favourites to finish top of the pile as they’re four points clear of the second-placed Lions, but then again, the men from Joburg have the slightly easier run-in.
Johan Ackermann’s team face Griquas and the Sharks away before finishing with a home game against the Cheetahs, while Western Province face a tricky trip to Nelspruit this weekend where they come up against a desperate Pumas and that’s followed by an away game to the Cheetahs and a home tie with the Sharks.
It’s certainly going to be a tight affair in the race to finish first and secure a home final, should the team progress that far, while further down the log it’s set up to be an equally interesting battle.
Thanks to their win against the Bulls at Loftus, the Sharks have moved to third in the standings with 20 points, but right behind them are the Pumas and Cheetahs, both on 19. The men from Bloemfontein are back in the hunt after a bonus-point win against the EP Kings and they’ll believe they can move higher up the log when they host the Bulls this weekend.
Frans Ludeke’s men battled against the Sharks and are now down in sixth place with a meagre 14 points from three wins and while not out of it completely, they’re going to need a lot to happen in the next three weeks if they’re to make the play-offs. Not only will the Bulls just about have to win all their remaining games, but other results will also have to go their way. It’s a tall order.
Griquas and the Kings are out of the running, but they could still spoil a few teams’ campaigns should they pull off the odd surprise or two, like Griquas beating the Lions in Kimberley this weekend. It’s unlikely to happen though, especially with Ackermann’s men playing with such confidence at the moment, but stranger things have happened in sport.
The Kings, preparing to make their return to Super Rugby when it expands to 18 teams in 2016, are still seeking their first win of the Currie Cup. While they’ve played some decent rugby at times, they’ve managed to collect just one losing bonus point, having conceded a whopping 36 tries in seven matches, 10 more than the second-to-last Griquas.
Leading the try-scoring stats are Western Province and the Lions, with 30 each, while the best defensive outfit are the Sharks, having let in just 13; that’s less than two on average per game.
l Western Province coach Allister Coetzee is not getting carried away after his side’s 36-12 bonus-point win over Griquas on Saturday at Newlands.
Despite the victory, Coetzee was displeased with the manner Province allowed Griquas back into the match in the closing stages.
“Five points at home – I’ll say it is mission accomplished, but I was not overly happy with our performance,” Coetzee said.
“We dropped off a bit when we held a big lead and it’s something we need to address this week at training.”
He said the team lost structure at the end when Griquas’ second-half pressure seemed to be draining efforts on defence. – additional reporting by Sapa - The Star