South Africa’s four franchises will look to build on their form in the two European competitions last week when they return to Vodacom United Rugby Championship action this weekend, where the race for playoff spots will begin to intensify significantly as the pool stages pass the halfway mark.
The Lions will line up against the Ospreys in Wales, and the Vodacom Bulls will go up against Edinburgh in Scotland in the two matches on Friday, while log-leaders, the DHL Stormers, will host the Hollywoodbets Sharks in a thrilling Coastal Derby in Cape Town on Saturday.
While the DHL Stormers, Vodacom Bulls, and Hollywoodbets Sharks will be looking to build on their rewarding victories in the Investec Champions Cup, the Lions will have their sights set on bouncing back from their EPCR Challenge Cup exit following their 20-20 draw against Perpignan last weekend.
The Lions have had a fair Vodacom URC season so far, winning four of their eight matches to occupy seventh place on the standings, and with Ospreys two places below them on the table, they will back themselves to deliver a quality performance at the Dunraven Brewery Field – after drawing and winning their last two EPCR Challenge Cup matches – to retain their place in the top eight and possibly reduce the gap between themselves and the leading teams with only eight pool matches remaining following this round.
The hosts will look to take advantage of Ospreys’ dip in form in their last two EPCR Challenge Cup matches, in which they went down to Zebre Parma in Italy and Montpellier at home in Wales, while they will also be mindful of the fact that the Lions have been more effective on attack, scoring 226 points to their 196 in the Vodacom URC to date.
The teams are also closely matched on defence, with Ospreys – who managed to qualify for the EPCR Challenge Cup Round of 16 – leaking only one more try in the Vodacom URC, while they will also have the luxury of playing in front of their home crowd in vastly different weather conditions to the South African summer.
The battle between the Vodacom Bulls and Edinburgh at the Hive Stadium, meanwhile, is expected to be gripping as both teams find themselves on the bottom half of the table with three wins in their eight outings, although the Scottish side’s superior points’ difference has placed them one position above the team from Pretoria.
Spicing up the clash, both teams have qualified for the Investec Champions Cup playoffs, but while the Vodacom Bulls come off a morale-boosting 26-24 victory against Section Paloise, Edinburgh are fresh off a heavy 63-10 defeat against Bath, which will fuel their motivation to bounce back strongly this week.
Adding to the Bulls’ motivation, the Scots have only suffered one defeat at home this season, but given the high stakes with the competition nearing the home stretch, they will be fully aware of the significance of registering a victory.
While the Vodacom Bulls’ attack has been better than the hosts’, they will have to step up their defence immensely after conceding 224 points to Edinburgh’s 147.
In Cape Town, the DHL Stormers will have their sights set on maintaining their unbeaten run at home this season when they host the Hollywoodbets Sharks at the DHL Stadium.
However, the table-topping hosts will be careful to not underestimate the Hollywoodbets Sharks, who may be way down in 14th place on the standings, but will enter the match with confidence following their comprehensive 50-12 victory against Clermont in Durban last week.
With the DHL Stormers remaining the only unbeaten team in the competition, and boasting 231 points to the KwaZulu-Natalians’ 156, while also holding the bragging rights as the best defensive team in the competition with only 95 points conceded to their coastal counterparts’ 215.
With this in mind, as well as their good home win over the Leicester Tigers last weekend, the hosts will enter the match as firm favourites, but history has proven that anything can happen in derby matches, which will set the scene for the nail-biting encounter.
Interestingly, the teams will meet again in Durban next weekend, meaning this match will set the tone for the double-header between the coastal franchises.
Match Information:
Ospreys v Lions
Date: Friday, 23 January
Venue: Dunraven Brewery Field, Wales
SA Time: 21h45
Referee: Federico Vedovelli
TV: SuperSport
Edinburgh v Vodacom Bulls
Date: Friday, 23 January
Venue: Hive Stadium, Edinburgh
SA Time: 21h45
Referee: Gianluca Gnecchi
TV: SuperSport
DHL Stormers v Hollywoodbets Sharks
Date: Saturday, 24 January
Venue: DHL Stadium, Cape Town
SA Time: 19h30
Referee: Aimee Barrett-Theron
TV: SuperSport
BlackExcalibur
Cricket was originally a children’s game played in England during the 16th century, specifically in the southeastern counties. When the British expanded overseas, they brought the game with them.
Woodland Beauty
The length of a cricket pitch is 22 yards i.e. 61.31 m2.