By MIKE GREENAWAY & BRONWYN GERRETSEN
KwaZulu-Natal's Currie Cup champions, the Sharks, will take a massive stride towards defending their title if they can see off the dogged challenge of the Cheetahs in tomorrow's 2.30pm semifinal at Durban's Absa Stadium and thus earn a huge pay day for the province by hosting the final on October 31.
The 5pm semifinal takes place in Cape Town between Western Province and the Bulls and the victor of that match will have to travel to Durban for the final - provided the Sharks are able to see off a bogey team of theirs that they have struggled to beat over the last decade or so.
Interestingly, the Sharks have beaten the Cheetahs twice this year in the Currie Cup but were smashed by the Free Staters in the Super 14 match in Bloemfontein.
Sharks captain Stefan Terblanche said his charges were wary of the fact that the Cheetahs will bring a nothing-to-lose and everything-to-gain attitude given the reprieve they have had in qualifying for the semifinal on the very last weekend of the round-robin stage after having been initially down and out when they lost their first four matches of the season.
Contrastingly, the Sharks have been at the top of the table since the early rounds of the three-month marathon, so the Cheetahs will enjoy their status as the unfavoured mongrels taking on the pedigreed favourites.
"The Cheetahs are going to have one heck of a go at us; we know the frame of mind they will be in and we have to meet and overcome that challenge," said Terblanche, who has had yet another brilliant year with the Sharks.
In a big boost for the Sharks, the 34-year-old this week confirmed that he will play one last year for the Sharks in 2010.
The Sharks are hardly short of superb leadership for the match - fullback Terblanche has not lost in 12 matches this year as captain and up front in the forwards he has John Smit and Johann Muller to assist him. The former is the most capped captain in the history of international rugby and the latter captained the Sharks to their drought-breaking win over the Bulls in last year's final.
Thousands of tickets are still available and fans are urged to soak up the semifinal atmosphere by supporting the home team.
Only about 2 000 tickets had been sold through the ticket office by Wednesday, but with more than 20 000 tickets already in the hands of season and suite ticket holders, and many more expected to pay at the gate, stadium authorities are expecting a crowd of at least 35 000.
Stadium manager Aslam Yusuf said food stalls and bars were stocked up and there would be music and festivities to keep people busy before and after the match.
"We are ready to roll. We will provide music on the outer fields before the game and people should come along and have a braai before watching us hopefully win against the Cheetahs," he said.
Durban-based singer and comedian Graham Boyle and local band Spoonfeedas will also be entertaining the crowds. There will be turnstile giveaways for the first 1 000 children and signing sessions at the Shark Cage from 12pm to 1pm.
Yusuf said the second semifinal between the Bulls and Western Province would be shown on a big screen on the outer field.
He urged fans to get to the stadium early to avoid congestion, and take into account that there are road works in the area.
But while the day and evening's activities are certain to get fans into celebratory moods, Metro Police have warned that they are better off staying inside the confines of the stadium until they sober up, "because we are waiting for them outside" should they attempt to drive drunk.
The weather forecast for Saturday is cloudy, with a 60 percent chance of rain and a high of 19 degrees celsius.