SA teams look for improvement on Super Saturday
While the Hollywoodbets Sharks and Toyota Cheetahs will look to build on their encouraging starts to the Investec Champions Cup and EPCR Challenge Cup last week, the Vodacom Bulls, DHL Stormers, and Emirates Lions will target a strong comeback after suffering defeats in the opening round of the European showpieces respectively last week.
The Vodacom Bulls will kick off a fully charged day of action on Saturday when they host the Northampton Saints in Pretoria in round two of the Investec Champions Cup, which will be followed by equally gripping encounters between the Leicester Tigers and Hollywoodbets Sharks, and Harlequins and the DHL Stormers in England.
In the EPCR Challenge Cup, the Emirates Lions will welcome Section Paloise to Johannesburg in what marks their first home game in the competition this season, while the Toyota Cheetahs will line up against Cardiff in Wales.
With this round of matches marking the second of only four games in the pool stages before the teams switch back to the Vodacom United Rugby Championship and their other club commitments, all five teams will target victories to give themselves the best possible chance to advance to the Round of 16 – the first of the playoff rounds – next year.
Investec Champions Cup
The Vodacom Bulls will look to make the most of their home ground advantage and the warm weather conditions when they welcome the Northampton Saints to Loftus Versfeld on Saturday, where they will be desperate to bounce back strongly from their disappointing 27-5 defeat against Saracens away last week and maintain their unbeaten run in Pretoria this season.
The men in blue are currently lying third on the Vodacom URC table, which will serve as a huge motivational factor against the Northampton Saints, who may be lying in eighth place on the Gallagher Premiership standings after three wins in seven outings, but who come off an emphatic 38-8 victory against Castres Olympique last weekend.
The Hollywoodbets Sharks, meanwhile, will be determined to build on their 39-21 victory against the Exeter Chiefs and continue with their winning momentum as they seek their fifth win in a row (three Vodacom URC victories and their round one win in the Investec Champions Cup) when they line up against the Leicester Tigers in England.
They will, however, be wary of the threat the hosts pose as they are ranked third on the log in the Gallagher Premiership, despite the Tigers coming off a 42-28 defeat against the Bordeaux Begles last week in their opening game of this competition.
The DHL Stormers’ clash against Harlequins at the Twickenham Stoop, meanwhile, could prove to be an epic encounter as both teams have struggled to hit their straps in the Vodacom URC and Gallagher Premiership respectively, which has left them at the bottom end of the log tables.
Both sides also hit a bump in the road in their opening Investec Champions Cup encounter, with the DHL Stormers going down by 24-14 to Toulon, and Harlequins suffering a 23-12 defeat against Racing 92.
EPCR Challenge Cup
The Emirates Lions will look to capitalise on their home ground advantage and passionate supporters when they host Section Paloise at Emirates Airline Park on Saturday in their second round EPCR Challenge Cup match, where they will be desperate to bounce back from their 30-14 defeat against Ospreys last week and build on their decent home form this season.
With two wins in three home games in the Vodacom URC so far this season and the Gauteng team currently in fifth place on the standings, they will enter the match with confidence, especially given that Section Paloise have won only four of their 11 Top 14 matches.
The Emirates Lions will be wary of underestimating their French visitors, who defeated the Newcastle Falcons in their opening match of the competition last weekend.
The Toyota Cheetahs, meanwhile, kicked off their campaign with a draw against Perpignan last week and will have all the motivation they need step up their performance and register a victory against Cardiff.
The Free Staters, however, will be mindful of the fact that it will take a big performance to achieve this feat as Cardiff are currently ranked fourth on the Vodacom URC log with four wins in seven matches.
However, the Toyota Cheetahs will draw inspiration from Lyon’s 37-26 victory against the Welsh outfit last week as they look to continue making a strong statement in their only international competition of the season.
Match information – Investec Champions Cup Round 2:
Vodacom Bulls v Northampton Saints
Date: Saturday, 14 December
Venue: Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
SA Time: 15h00
Referee: Luc Ramos
TV: SuperSport
Leicester Tigers v Hollywoodbets Sharks
Date: Saturday, 14 December
Venue: Mattioli Woods Welford Road, Leicester
SA Time: 19h30
Referee: Andrea Piardi
TV: SuperSport
Harlequins v DHL Stormers
Date: Saturday, 14 December
Venue: Twickenham Stoop, London
SA Time: 22h00
Referee: Ludovic Cayre
TV: SuperSport
Match Information – EPCR Challenge Cup Round 2:
Emirates Lions v Section Paloise
Date: Saturday, 14 December
Venue: Emirates Airline Park, Johannesburg
SA Time: 17h15
Referee: Anthony Woodthorpe
TV: SuperSport
Cardiff v Toyota Cheetahs
Date: Saturday, 14 December
Venue: Cardiff Arms Park, Cardiff
SA Time: 22h00
Referee: Eoghan Cross
TV: SuperSport
