Venues as far afield as Secunda, Lichtenburg and Caledon (where DHL WP are set to feature) will play host this weekend as the 2015 Vodacom Cup picks up speed with action in the South Section getting underway.
The first match in the South Section is on Friday evening is in George, where the SWD Eagles host the Toyota Free State XV.
Three more matches in this section follow on Saturday, one of which will see the defending champions in action when GWK Griquas travel to Port Elizabeth to take on the EP Kings. The other two South Section matches are scheduled for Durban (Cell C Sharks XV v Border Bulldogs) and Caledon (Boland Cavaliers v DHL Western Province).
The biggest match in the North Section is on Friday afternoon when two of the three unbeaten sides, the Xerox Golden Lions and the Vodacom Blue Bulls, square off in Johannesburg.
On Saturday, the action in the north moves to the platteland, more specifically Lichtenburg (Leopards XV v Hino Valke) and Secunda (Steval Pumas v Assupol Limpopo Blue Bulls).
RISING STAR OF THE WEEK – WILCO LOUW (DHL WESTERN PROVINCE):
Most props are solid chunks of meat and Wilco Louw is no different.
The DHL Western Province prop, who is in line to make his senior provincial debut on Saturday in Caledon, is 1,85m tall and weighs in at 130kg, making him one of the heaviest players in South Africa.
Louw’s budding career has taken him from Boland via Pretoria to Cape Town. He made the SA Schools side in 2012 before making his mark as junior for the Vodacom Blue Bulls’ U19 and U21 sides in 2013 and 2014 respectively.
Last year Louw made an impression on the national selectors and was rewarded with a spot in the Junior Springboks side to New Zealand, where he featured at tighthead prop in all five of their matches.
The 20-year-old was born in Ceres and finished his schooling at Drostdy Technical High School in Worcester and was lured back to the Western Cape at the end of last season and is another in a long line of very promising young props in the DHL Western Province stable – including Springbok Frans Malherbe, Steven Kitshoff and Oli Kebble.
Louw made his Vodacom Super Rugby debut as a replacement for the DHL Stormers in the first round earlier this year and brings raw power and tenacity to the DHL Western Province side and will no doubt be a tough customer to deal with come scrum time.
ROUND THREE FIXTURES:
Friday, March 20:
Xerox Golden Lions v Vodacom Blue Bulls
Kick-off: 15h00
Venue: Emirates Airline Park, Johannesburg
Referee: Quinton Immelman
SWD Eagles v Toyota Free State XV
Kick-off: 19h00
Venue: Outeniqua Park, George
Referee: Rodney Boneparte
Saturday, March 21:
Leopards XV v Hino Valke
Kick-off: 14h30
Venue: Lichtenburg High School, Lichtenburg
Referee: Francois Pretorius
EP Kings v GWK Griquas
Kick-off: 15h30
Venue: Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth
Referee: Tahla Ntshakaza
Cell C Sharks XV v Border Bulldogs
Kick-off: 15h30
Venue: Growthpoint Kings Park, Durban
Referee: Cwengile Jadezweni
Steval Pumas v Assupol Limpopo Blue Bulls
Kick-off: 16h00
Venue: Secunda
Referee: Archie Sehlako
Boland Cavaliers v DHL Western Province
Kick-off: 16h30
Venue: Caledon
Referee: Jaco Pretorius
