A first-time champion in the Carlton Cup will be crowned between ABE Midas Naka Bulle and Northam Rhinos, the sides who will take each other on at Loftus Versfeld in the final of the club competition on Saturday.
Pretoria has been buzzing with excitement ahead of the title-decider of the second-oldest rugby trophy in South Africa, behind the prestigious Currie Cup.
Northam Rhinos have announced a strong side, with Vodacom Bulls hooker, Sidney Tobias, among the starters. ABE Naka Bulle, on the other hand, will boast a strong bench that includes Vodacom Bulls fullback, Sibongile Novuka. So vast is the experience on both sides that there is a total of 16 players with Currie Cup experience and a quartet of former Junior Springboks will turn out for the two rivals on Saturday.
President of the Blue Bulls Rugby Union, Willem Strauss, said ahead of the final: “We have seen a great revival of club rugby which will culminate in the exciting Carlton Cup final between two top clubs.
“Our aim is to make club rugby relevant again. All our stakeholders have been aligned and have bought into the vision of growing and excelling on all levels of rugby in our region, which in turn is for the greater good of South African rugby in general.
“We wish both ABE Naka Bulle and Northam Rhinos the very best for the final, and in the same breath, congratulate all the teams that participated this season for a competitive and exciting competition. We look forward to seeing club rugby continue to grow from strength to strength.”
The kick-off for the match will be 19h00, and it will be televised on SABC 2.
The teams are:
ABE Midas Naka Bulle
Forwards: Ruan Grundelingh, Theuns Reynolds (CAPT), Lawrence Cleminson, JP Alberts, Stephan Vermuelen, Eckard Boshoff, Human Bodenstein, Nico du Plessis. Backline: Jack Hart, Danny Makoabane, Frans Botha, Charles Goedhals, Johan Grobler, Kefentse Mahlo, Juan Nel. Replacements: Marius Stander, Primo Ncube, Brendon Verster, Boeta du Preez, Nico du Plessis, Ettiene Storm, Tony Jantjies, Sibongile Novuka.
Northam
Forwards: Khwezi Mkhafu, Sidney Tobias, Thabiso Mngomezulu, Gerdus Botha, Ruan Janse van Rensburg, Jan-Hendrik Cronje, Adriaan Louw, Chaney Willemse. Backline: Patrick Hattingh, Kurshwill Williams, Anthony Brand, Chrizaan Strauss, Mitchelle van der Merwe, Ashwill Adams, Daniel Loots. Replacements: Pieter Viljoen, Zander de Kock, Patrick Mathe, Dean van der Merwe, Estehan Visagie, Damion Muller, Cecil Dumond, Xolani Nkosi.