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Absa Currie Cup Premier Division kicks off in Port Elizabeth

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South Africa’s top domestic rugby competition, the Absa Currie Cup, kicks-off on Friday evening in Port Elizabeth when newcomers EP Kings plays against DHL Western Province at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium.

The Premier Division encounter starts at 19h00 and SuperSport will again broadcast all the games live and in HD, starting with Friday evening’s clash in PE which will be aired on SS1. The semis are scheduled for Saturday, 18 October and will be followed a week later by the season finale, the Absa Currie Cup final.

In a boost for the Eastern Cape region, the Kings return to the Premier Division after a 12-year absence and they can brace themselves for a tough match against Western Province, last season’s log winners, who lost at home in Cape Town to the Cell C Sharks in the final.

The Kings have traditionally enjoyed good support from the Eastern Cape rugby fans at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium and a passionate crowd is expected on Friday to witness their comeback to the top flight. Luke Watson will captain the Kings from the number eight position.

Centre Juan de Jongh leads a much-changed WP outfit, which will include fit again Springboks Eben Etzebeth (lock) and Frans Malherbe (prop). The latter two were released from Springbok duty in order to get some much-needed game time after returning from lengthy injury lay-offs.

Did you know that the Western Province team that won the first SA inter-provincial title in 1891 contained three naval officers – all of whom, by incredible coincidence, rose to the rank of admiral!

The remaining three matches are scheduled for Saturday. In the early afternoon game GWK Griquas play host to champions The Sharks. The Kimberley outfit will be hoping to repeat their heroics of last season when they defeated the Sharks at home in Durban. Kick-off is 14:45.

Griquas regained entry to the top-flight after just managing to hold off the Leopards in a thrilling qualifying competition and coach Hawies Fourie and his team will be relishing the prospects of facing the defending champions in their first match.

The Xerox Golden Lions and Vodacom Blue Bulls meet at Ellis Park in the second match of the day at 17h00.

Under coach Johan Ackermann the Lions have developed into a formidable unit when playing at Ellis Park and this clash has all the ingredients to produce a typical South African derby. Captain and No 8 Warren Whiteley is enjoying a good season so far, leading a youthful Lions franchise team in Vodacom Super Rugby and winning a gold medal with the Springbok Sevens team at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.

The Bulls are rebuilding after a disappointing campaign last season when they lost a host of established stars. However, with Frans Ludeke back in the coaching seat after taking over the reigns from Pine Pienaar, the Pretoria team have some of the country’s most outstanding young talent from which to choose. Ludeke has handed the skipper duties to flanker Deon Stegmann.

In the remaining fixture on Saturday the Steval Pumas are home in Nelspruit against the Toyota Free State Cheetahs. Under coach, Jimmy Stonehouse, the Pumas went 14 games unbeaten to win the First Division title in impressive fashion last year, a feat which saw him scoop the Absa Coach of the Year prize at the annual SARU Player of the Year awards.

Corné Steenkamp will play in a landmark 150th first class match when he leads the Pumas onto the field in Nelspruit. As for the Cheetahs, they are expected to be challenging again for a top four spot despite losing many stalwarts to other provinces or overseas clubs. They have in coach Rory Duncan and captain Torsten van Jaarsveld two new men at the helm.

The Premier Division of the Absa Currie Cup was expanded from six teams to eight following a decision by SARU’s General Council in February. This format ensures that the six anchor unions in South African rugby (the Vodacom Blue Bulls, Cell C Sharks, DHL Western Province, Toyota Free State Cheetahs, Xerox Golden Lions and the EP Kings) will be guaranteed their places in the Absa Currie Cup Premier Division for the next two seasons.

First Division champions, the Steval Pumas, gained entry into the Premier Division after winning the promotion-relegation matches against GWK Griquas at the conclusion of last season, while GWK Griquas booked their spot in a thrilling qualifying series.

Team information:

  1. Vodacom Blue Bulls – Coach: Frans Ludeke, Captain: Deon Stegman (flank), Last season: Fifth (3 wins, 6 losses, 1 draw)
  2. Toyota Free State Cheetahs – Coach: Rory Duncan, Captain: Torsten van Jaarsveld, Last season: Third (5 wins, 5 losses)
  3. EP Kings – Coach: Carlos Spencer, Captain: Luke Watson (No 8), Last season: First Division runners-up (10 wins, 4 losses)
  4. GWK Griquas – Coach: Hawies Fourie, Captain: Wayne Stevens (centre), Last season: Sixth (1 win, 9 losses; winners of Qualifying tournament – 6 wins, 0 losses)
  5. Golden Lions – Coach: Johan Ackermann, Captain: Warren Whiteley, Last season: Fourth (4 wins, 5 losses, 1 draw)
  6. Steval Pumas – Coach: Jimmy Stonehouse, Captain: Corné Steenkamp, Last season: Absa Currie Cup First Division champions (14 wins, 0 losses)
  7. Cell C Sharks – Coach: Brad MacLeod-Henderson, Captain: Tera Mtembu, Last season: Champions (second on log, 7 wins, 3 losses)
  8. DHL Western Province – Coach: Allister Coetzee, Captain: Juan de Jongh, Last season: Runners-up (first on log, 8 wins, 2 losses)

The Absa Currie Cup Premier Division fixtures for this weekend – Round 1

Friday, 8 August:

  • EP Kings vs DHL Western Province at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth. Kick-off: 19h00. Referee: Jaco Peyper. Assistant Referees: Christie du Preez, Jaco Pretorius. TMO: Deon van Blommestein

Saturday, 9 August:

  • GWK Griquas vs Cell C Sharks at GWK Park, Kimberley. Kick-off: 14h45. Referee: Craig Joubert. Assistant Referees: Louwrens van der Merwe, Francois de Bruin. TMO: JJ Wagner
  • Golden Lions vs Vodacom Blue Bulls at Ellis Park, Johannesburg. Kick-off: 17h00. Referee: Jaco van Heerden. Assistant Referees: Stuart Barry, Ben Crouse. TMO: Johan Greeff
  • Steval Pumas vs Toyota Free State Cheetahs. Venue: Mbombela Stadium, Nelspruit. Kick-off: 19h00. Referee: Marius van der Westhuizen. Assistant Referees: Gerrie du Bruin, Stefan Breytenbach. TMO: Willie Vos
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Alan Straton

Chief Cook, Bottle Washer and Broom Mechanic at MyPE
Passionate about Port Elizabeth and definitely NOT packing for Perth. Alan's ethos is epitomised in the words of Nelson Mandela; "I have fought against white domination and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the idea of a democratic and free society. If need be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die." See more articles by Alan.