Tim Swiel passes the ball during a Western Province training session. Picture: Gallo Images
Western Province is preparing for a successful Currie Cup campaign as the competition kicks off this weekend with a home match against the Lions.
Backline coach Nazeem Adams explained that the goal is to win the competition, but they are also looking to blood new players along the way.
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“Everybody wants to win. Province has a fantastic record in the Currie Cup and we are a proud union, so winning will be high up on our agenda,” said Adams.
“But we are also looking at bringing players through. So we want to give some of the senior players who need it some game time in the competition, while also bringing some youngsters into the side.”
The Currie Cup side will thus be working closely with the United Rugby Championship team as they help give some senior players who are short of game time some much needed minutes.
These senior players will also help nurture the incoming youngsters and assist in their development.
“The beauty of this is we have a great working relationship with the Stormers management,” Adams said.
“They usually train with a big squad but they have released some players to train with us, which is good.”
Despite the fact that the Western Province Currie Cup side and the Stormers URC team will be switching players around on a weekly basis, the Currie Cup squad do not have to play the same style of rugby as the URC side, though it will be similar.
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“There is an alignment, but we won’t be playing 100% the same. We do have a framework we have to work in, but within that framework we do have the freedom to play and try out certain things,” explained Adams.
“The Currie Cup is a different competition so we will be trying out different things as we go.”
Western Province will host their opening two Currie Cup matches at Cape Town Stadium, taking on the Lions this weekend before welcoming the Bulls for a midweek match a few days later.
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