With one round of action left before the Currie Cup semifinals, DHL Western Province need just one log point to guarantee their play-off spot.
Currently five log points ahead of the fifth-placed Vodacom Blue Bulls, any log points earned in their final league clash with the table-topping Cell C Sharks in Durban on Saturday will assure DHL Western Province of a place in the play-offs.
However, their current points tally could still be enough to see them through if the Vodacom Blue Bulls fail to claim five log points in their clash with the Steval Pumas. DHL Western Province’s points difference is also currently 96 points better than the Pretoria side who would require close to a 100-point swing in order to move past DHL Western Province on the standings.
Toyota Free State Cheetahs require at least two log points from their encounter with the Xerox Golden Lions to move past DHL Western Province, but a win without a bonus point in Durban will more than likely be enough to secure second place and a home semi-final for DHL Western Province regardless. The points difference between the two teams is more than 150, which means that four points against the Cell C Sharks should be enough for DHL Western Province to book a home semifinal.
A win for the Xerox Golden Lions against the Toyota Free State Cheetahs in the final match of the league phase will also mean that DHL Western Province require victory against the Cell C Sharks to secure a home semifinal at DHL Newlands.
Meanwhile, DHL Western Province U19 will play their semifinal against Toyota Free State Cheetahs U19 at home on October 21 (two weeks time) after they finished the league phase of the competition on top of the standings with 11 wins from 12 games.
DHL Western Province U21 will play their semifinal against the Xerox Golden Lions U21 in Johannesburg on October 21 after they finished third on the log thanks to their impressive 78-7 victory against Leopards U21 in Potchefstroom.
Currie Cup final round fixtures
Friday, October 13
Vodacom Blue Bulls v Steval Pumas
(Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria – Kick-off: 19h00)
Saturday, October 14
Cell C Sharks v DHL Western Province
(Growthpoint Kings Park, Durban – Kick-off: 15h00)
Xerox Golden Lions v Toyota Free State Cheetahs
(Emirates Airline Park, Johannesburg – Kick-off: 17h15)
