Currie Cup state of play: URC players to boost Sharks, Bulls

With the Bulls now out of the United Rugby Championship, well beaten in the quarterfinals by the Stormers on Saturday, director of rugby Jake White is sure to turn his attention to the Currie Cup where the Pretoria-based team still have a chance of winning silverware this season.

But, the Bulls will need the full attention of White and the coaching team — and possibly the majority of their URC players — because it’s close to being a case of “must-win” every time the Bulls run out.

After a disastrous start to their campaign, when Edgar Marutlulle was put in charge, the Bulls hit back with a few wins to get back on track, but their loss at the weekend to the Sharks (41-27) at Loftus Versfeld was a huge setback; also coming hours after the “senior team” were humbled by the Stormers in the URC in Cape Town.

Sharks

The Bulls now find themselves down in seventh place in the standings after just three wins from nine game and 17 points. They have a mountain to climb to make the top four to have a chance in the knockout rounds.

With their win, the Sharks consolidated their place in the top four. The win was the team’s sixth and they now have 28 points and will also look to make a big move in the coming weeks and challenge the top two teams now that they, too, are out of the URC.

The Sharks’ URC team were beaten by Leinster in the quarterfinals on Saturday and a number of their players will now feature in the Currie Cup, significantly boosting their chances of catching the leaders, the Cheetahs and Pumas.

Cheetahs

The Cheetahs, after their narrow 26-21 win over Western Province are top of the pile (36 points from seven wins), with the Capetonians in fifth (22 points) from four wins.

The defending champions, the Pumas, are a close second with 34 points, also from seven wins, following their most recent victory, a 45-25 win against the Griffons.

The men from Welkom, playing in the Premier Division for the first time in years, are bottom of the pile with eight points.

In the other match at the weekend, the Griquas pipped the Lions 25-21 in Kimberley, leaving Griquas in fourth with 23 points and the Lions in sixth with 20.

With just five rounds remaining the battle is on to finish in the top four.

This week’s fixtures

Friday: Griffons v WP (3pm), Pumas v Sharks (5.05pm)

Saturday: Griquas v Bulls (3pm), Cheetahs v Lions (5.05pm)