The top of the table in the Women’s Premier Division can look vastly different by Saturday night when the top four sides collide in what promises to be a very important round of action.
One takes on two and three faces four on Saturday and by the end of round five, the top four could be totally scrambled, while the bottom four teams will want to use this opportunity to keep themselves in the race for the semi-finals.
The action starts in Pretoria where the Bulls Daisies will be aiming for their 19th consecutive victory when they host the second-placed Sanlam Boland Dames at Loftus Versfeld.
Both teams are joined on 20 log points, but the Daisies’ points’ difference of 224 is exactly double of the Dames’ 112, which probably indicates that the home team will take the field as favourites to be the lone side at the top of the log after this weekend’s encounters.
While the team from the capital have been in great form – their last match against the Dames ended in a 64-8 rout in last year’s semi-final – the Bolanders have shown a new lease of life in 2024, scoring 26 tries and conceding only six in their four matches to date.
Both teams are without their Springbok Women’s players, which should even the playing field, but when the first ball is kicked at 10h45 on Saturday morning – with the action broadcast live on SuperSport – what happened in the last month will count for nothing as these two go all out to remain at the summit.
In Gqeberha, the EP Queens will be desperate to move from the bottom of the log and record their first victory of the season when they host the Sharks Women at Adcock Stadium.
With one win so far, the Sharks will be regarded as the favourites for this match, and they will travel to Nelson Mandela Bay with the knowledge that victory – combined with a few other results going their way – could see them leap into the top four, which should be more than enough motivation to make the most of their trip south.
Roughly 300km northeast, at Baysville High School in East London, the Border Ladies – currently fourth on the log – welcome third-placed DHL Western Province in a match that is one of the biggest on the local calendar.
In 2021 and 2022, the Ladies upset their hosts in Cape Town to clinch back-to-back Women’s Premier Division finals, and they will be going all out to repeat those results, as well as last year’s 23-17 victory at home in East London a few months before DHL WP beat Border in the 2023 semi-final.
The final match of the round is in Johannesburg, where the Golden Lions Women host the Free State Women as a Vodacom URC curtain-raiser at Emirates Airline Park.
Both sides will be looking for their second victory of the season and have shown positive signs in their first four matches, setting the scene for a tense clash that could in essence go either way.
The Free Staters will go into the encounter high on confidence after their maiden Premier Division win last weekend, while the Lions will be keen to erase the memories of their last outing, in Cape Town, where they failed to trouble the scorers.
Match information:
Bulls Daisies v Sanlam Boland Dames
Date: Saturday 11 May
Venue: Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
Kick-off: 10h45
Referee: Ashleigh Murray-Pretorius
TV: SuperSport 208
EP Queens v Sharks Women
Date: Saturday 11 May
Venue: Adcock Stadium, Gqeberha
Kick-off: 11h30
Referee: Bulela Qwane
Border Ladies v DHL Western Province
Date: Saturday 11 May
Venue: Baysville High School, East London
Kick-Off: 13h30
Referee: Angie Bezuidenhout
Golden Lions Women v Free State Women
Date: Saturday 11 May
Venue: Emirates Airline Park, Johannesburg
Kick-off: 14h30
Referee: Siyanda Pikoli
Streaming: SA Rugby YouTube channel
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The roundarm action used for throwing the ball was used prior to the overarm throw used today. Prior to its conception, the underarm throw was used. The roundarm throw was conceived by English cricketer Tom Walker during the 1790s. Some insiders credit a woman, Christiana Willes to have devised the roundarm style. Wearing the bulky dresses of her time, Willes found the underarm throw difficult and inaccurate and decided to change it.
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