The three top sports teams in Port Elizabeth are approaching a very important phase.
Key fixtures are coming up for Chippa United on the soccer field, the Warriors on the cricket pitch and the EP Elephants on the rugby field.
It has been tough recently for Nelson Mandela Bay residents with the humid conditions, the ongoing lockdown regulations and a few strikes here and there. On the sports fields there was very little to shout about.
The Proteas were very disappointing on their cricket tour of Pakistan, losing both the test and T20 series, so sports fans are not smiling much.
Victories in their respective upcoming fixtures for Chippa United, the Warriors and the Elephants will give the Bay fans a huge lift.
First up are the Warriors who will be in action on Friday against the Titans in the very first match of the Cricket South Africa T20 competition for this season.
The Warriors blew hot and cold in the one-day series, but traditionally do well in the T20 version of the game.
Due to Covid-19 regulations, all matches in this competition will be played in Durban, from Friday till the final on March 28.
There will be no home ground advantage for the Warriors, but they have played some fine matches in Durban in recent times and will be confident to do well. They could not have asked for a more difficult first match, as the Titans is a very strong and talented side.
Chippa United is next up and is at home in the Nelson Mandela Bay stadium on Saturday. Chippa did well to secure a 1-1 draw against Bloemfontein Celtic this past weekend.
This performance should give the players confidence to tackle TS Galaxy and a win will improve the log position of the home side quite a bit.
Good news for local rugby fans is that the Elephants will be involved in an eight-team tournament starting on February 27.
The Elephants start with a very tough fixture, taking on the Blue Bulls in Pretoria.
There won’t be many, if any, that will be giving the Elephants a winning chance, but just imagine if they can pull off a surprise win!
Some pundits have already started to brand this clash as a battle of two former Springbok coaches, Jake White at the Bulls and Peter de Villiers, who started in December with his coaching stint in PE. To see the match in this light is hugely unfair to De Villiers who obviously doesn’t have the same quality of playing talent as the Bulls to work with.
While I don’t give the Elephants a chance, the Warriors and Chippa United just might give us something to smile about this weekend.
