Magic 100 for Sarel Pretorius
#1891 Man: Frik du Preez was one of the giants of South African rugby. A player of inspirational skill, he at one time, held the record with Jan Ellis as the most capped Springbok of all time (38 caps). The Northern Transvaal stalwart played lock and flank and was a versatile kicker. He played his first test in 1960 and last in 1971. He wore the Springbok jersey 87 times, scored 87 points (12 tries, 15 conversions and 7 penalty goals). One of his most memorable games was the 1969 Currie Cup Final when he single-handedly won the game for Northern Transvaal by scoring 3 tries, a drop goal and a penalty goal against Western Province at Newlands.
Toyota Free State Cheetahs scrumhalf Sarel Pretorius will join a select group of players in South African rugby to reach the magical milestone of 100 Absa Currie Cup matches on Saturday in their clash against the EP Kings.
Pretorius made his debut for the Valke in 2006 and played in 18 matches before moving to Kimberley where he represented Griquas in 53 matches. The star play-maker then made the move to Bloemfontein in 2012 and racked up a further 28 Currie Cup caps.
This will mark his 100th match and his team will be hoping to mark the occasion with a possible bonus-point victory in the hope of forcing their way into the top four on the log standings.
Only four pool rounds remain including this weekend’s clashes and only 10 points separate the first-placed DHL Western Province and sixth-placed Vodacom Blue Bulls, while all eight teams still have a mathematical chance of qualifying for the semifinals.
In the only match on Friday the Xerox Golden Lions host the Steval Pumas in Johannesburg, and on Saturday DHL Western Province meet GWK Griquas in Cape Town and the Vodacom Blue Bulls battle it out with the Cell C Sharks in Pretoria.
The Xerox Golden Lions will be hunting their fourth home win of the season against the Steval Pumas at Ellis Park, and should they succeed in this mission, they will keep their unbeaten record at home intact. But they are expected to face tough competition from the Nelspruit team, who trail them by only one log point, and who are desperate to bounce back from their defeat against GWK Griquas last week. The visitors will be wary of the Xerox Golden Lions’ impressive attack, in particular, which has earned them 26 tries in six matches and four bonus points. But with the Steval Pumas having conceded only 12 tries in their six matches, they will back themselves to shut out the Johannesburg team. History, however, favours the hosts as they have suffered only two defeats against the Steval Pumas since 1996.
DHL Western Province, meanwhile, will be determined to maintain their unbeaten record at home and simultaneously hold onto their lead at the top of the log when they line up against GWK Griquas at DHL Newlands on Saturday. But they will be careful to write off the visitors, who are languishing at the bottom-end of the log, especially after their upset against the Steval Pumas last week. The Cape side will place a big emphasis on good discipline in particular after GWK Griquas fullback Gouws Prinsloo kicked eight penalties last week to guide his team to victory. But the visitors will have to tighten up their defence to keep alive hopes of registering a rare win in Cape Town as the log-leaders have scored the second highest number of tries so far in the competition.
In Port Elizabeth the EP Kings will be hunting their first victory, while the Toyota Free State Cheetahs will have their sights set on possibly improving or maintaining their log position for a possible semifinal berth. The Bloemfontein team will undoubtedly draw confidence from their last-gasp 30-30 draw against the Cell C Sharks last week, but with only four pool rounds remaining, the hosts will be desperate to finish their season on a high note. Solid defence, in particular, will be vital for the Kings, as the Free State side have several play-makers in their backline, including Pretorius, meaning they will have to defend like demons. The last time the teams met in the competition was in 2001 in Bloemfontein and the Free State side won 75-21.
The clash in Pretoria is expected to be hard-fought given the determination in both camps to find their rhythm in the competition with an eye on securing semifinal places. The Cell C Sharks showed their fighting spirit last week by putting up a good fight against the Toyota Free State Cheetahs, but the Vodacom Blue Bulls come off back-to-back victories and will look to build on this at home. Adding spice to the match, a place in the top four on the log could be at stake, as the Durban side has only a narrow two-point lead over the sixth-placed Vodacom Blue Bulls. With the teams closely matched on attack with 14 tries a piece in their six matches, it could prove to be a nail-biting encounter. Interestingly the home team won only two of their last 10 matches against the Cell C Sharks in the series, however, these victories were at home.
Team news
Lions coach Johan Ackermann proved his faith in the team that toppled DHL Western Province and made only one enforced change to his starting team with lock Martin Muller replacing the injured Luvuyiso Lusaseni. Steval Pumas coach Jimmy Stonehouse also made only one change to his starting XV with scrumhalf Dylon Frylinck returning from injury, which forced Reynier van Rooyen to the bench.
DHL Western Province coach Allister Coetzee made several changes to his team with the most significant being Springbok Sevens star Justin Geduld and flank Sikhumbuzo Notshe earning their first starts at wing and flank respectively, while replacement prop Oliver Kebble could make his debut off the bench. Flyhalf Demetri Catrakilis, prop Brok Harris and hooker Scarra Ntubeni were also promoted to the starting team. GWK Griquas coach Hawies Fourie made three changes to his starting team with prop Maks van Dyk starting at prop, while lock Hugo Kloppers earns his first start and looseforward Burger Schoeman is promoted from the bench to the starting team.
In Port Elizabeth EP Kings coach Carlos Spencer also made a handful of changes due to player rotation and injury. These changes included the selection of debutante hooker Martin Ferreira, flank Darron Nell and wing Siyanda Grey, while Siviwe Soyizwapi will start at fullback. Toyota Free State Cheetahs coach Rory Duncan recalled exciting backs Clayton Blommetjies and wing Raymond Rhule following injuries in the only two changes to his starting team.
In Pretoria No8 Jono Ross will lead the Vodacom Blue Bulls in the absence of suspended captain Deon Stegmann in a run-on team that features four changes with Wiaan Liebenberg, Callie Visagie, Sampie Mastriet and Rudy Paige earning starting berths. The Cell C Sharks, meanwhile, named a new-look backline with Springbok wing Lwazi Mvovo and S’bura Sithole starting at wing and Paul Jordaan and Andre Esterhuizen respectively featuring in a strong midfield combination. Among the forwards lock JC Astle returns from injury to partner Marco Wentzel in the engine room.
Absa Currie Cup Premier Division fixtures:
Xerox Golden Lions vs Steval Pumas
Venue: Ellis Park, Johannesburg
Date: Friday, 19 September 2014
Time: 19h10
Referee: Jaco van Heerden
Assistant Referee: Stuart Berry and Stefan Breytenbach
TMO: Willie Vos
TV: SS1
DHL Western Province vs GWK Griquas
Venue: DHL Newlands, Cape Town
Date: Saturday, 20 September 2014
Time: 15h00
Referee: Pro Legoete
Assistant Referees: Marius van der Westhuizen and Marc van Zyl
TMO: Shaun Veldsman
TV: SS1
EP Kings vs Toyota Free State Cheetahs
Venue: Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth
Date: Saturday, 20 September 2014
Time: 15h00
Referee: Marius Jonker
Assistant Referees: Jaco Pretorius and Fernando Uithaler
Vodacom Blue Bulls vs Cell C Sharks
Venue: Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
Date: Saturday, 20 September 2014
Time: 17h05
Referee: Quinton Immelman
Assistant Referees: Lourens van der Merwe and Cobus Wessels
TMO: Johan Greeff
TV: SS1
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