Will Covid disrupt more Currie Cup action this Christmas weekend?

Covid has hit the local rugby season hard in recent weeks and this Christmas weekend could see the Currie Cup competition thrown into more disarray.

Only two matches are scheduled to be played this weekend: Western Province are scheduled to host Griquas at Newlands on Saturday and the Cheetahs are set to welcome the Sharks to Bloemfontein on Sunday afternoon.

The Bulls game against the Lions – which was due to be played at Loftus on Boxing Day – was postponed earlier in the week because of Covid issues in the Bulls team.

But now there’s also doubt over the Cheetahs and Sharks match.

It is understood there is some anxiety in the Sharks camp about their latest round of Covid tests, which will determine whether they travel to Bloemfontein or not.

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Several Sharks players have already been affected by Covid, with some withdrawn from their squad for their match last weekend against the Lions – though coach Sean Everitt didn’t specify which were Covid-related and which were due to injuries.

The Currie Cup competition has reached such a delicate stage that all the contenders are desperate to pick up maximum points so no one at this stage will be satisfied with a cancelled match that will bring in just two points each.

The Bulls are currently leading on 35 points, followed by the Lions on 29, the Sharks on 28, Province on 26 and the Cheetahs on 21.

Province’s match against Griquas meanwhile looks set to continue without disruption.

After enjoying their bye last week, Province have now seemingly recovered from their Covid issues.

Springbok prop Frans Malherbe was one of the players withdrawn due to “illness” in recent times, while coach John Dobson also revealed some of his other props had been affected by Covid issues.

Malherbe is now set to return to the team and bolster the Province scrum which was under great pressure in the Pumas game.

Although the team announcement will only take place today (Thursday), backline coach Dawie Snyman revealed the Capetonians would also welcome back flyhalf Tim Swiel, who was concussed after just two minutes in the Pumas match.

Griquas will go into the game having not played in two weeks after their clash with the Bulls last weekend was cancelled because of Covid issues in the Bulls squad.

Kick-off at Newlands is at 4.30pm on Saturday, while the game in Bloemfontein is set to start at 4.30pm on Sunday afternoon.

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