BLOEMFONTEIN: The Toyota Cheetahs are hoping to get fourth-time lucky in their quest for the Carling Currie Cup premier division glory as they face off against Suzuki Griquas in an intriguing semi-final taking place at Suzuki Stadium in Kimberley, today – Saturday, September 13. Another pulsating semi-final is between the Fidelity ADT Lions and Sanlam Boland Kavaliers at Ellis Park. Kick-off is at 17:00.
The four teams will need big-match temperament for this must-win fixtures which is crucial in their quest for cup glory. The two winners in the semi-finals will meet in the final on 20 September. A place in a Currie Cup premier division final is the big reward for any team.
This being the Free State outfit’s fourth semi-final in a row, they will be striving to overcome past disappointments and reach the final. They are equally inspired to claim the cup title along with the other three teams: the Griquas, Lions, and Kavaliers. The Free State giants won the 2023 title but lost to the Sharks XV, going down 34-40 in the semi-final last year. The Griquas are confident about the prospects of an upset going into this crucial game, building on their achievement of reaching the 2022 final, in which they lost 26-19 against the Pumas. Reaching the semi-final, the Kimberley-based outfit is one step closer to another potential historic final within four years.
The gutsy Northern Cape lads welcome their Free State neighbours who are still reeling from a 10-40 loss two weeks ago in Bloemfontein in the preliminary rounds of this prestigious South African rugby championship.
Both the Cheetahs head coach Frans Steyn and captain Victor Sekekete have emphasised the importance of team play over individual efforts in today’s super-charged encounter. While Steyn conceded there were costly errors in the previous game, he urged his warriors to show their pedigree – signalling it will be a different game. “We want everybody involved, doing their bit and I’m hopeful of a good performance in this game,” said Steyn.
Sekekete echoed the coach’s sentiments of the importance of focusing on the objective of today. “Semi-final is big for us, four years in a row is massive. The first job is ensuring we win in the semi-final before focusing on winning the cup. We have to focus on completing the task at hand,” said Sekekete.
You must be logged in to post a comment.