Five teams will compete for the last two playoff spots in the final round of the Currie Cup Premier Division, while the Mzansi Challenge semi-finals will be staged in Kempton Park and George on Saturday.
The Cell C Sharks and Toyota Cheetahs have already secured home advantage for the Currie Cup Premier Division semi-finals. The next round of fixtures will determine which of these teams finishes at the top of the log and earns the right to host a potential final.
The Toyota Cheetahs will be gunning for a win against the Vodacom Bulls in Pretoria on Saturday afternoon. They currently trail the Cell C Sharks by two points in the standings.
But if the Free Staters lose at Loftus Versfeld and fail to obtain any bonus points, the KwaZulu-Natalians will head into their final league fixture against DHL Western Province in Cape Town with the knowledge that they have already secured a top-place finish.
The tournament has witnessed an almighty battle for playoff positions in recent weeks. That scrap will reach a climax this weekend, with the Airlink Pumas, Vodacom Bulls, Windhoek Draught Griquas, DHL WP and Fidelity ADT Lions competing for the final two spots.
The Airlink Pumas, who currently sit in third place, will be targeting a win in Kimberley on Friday, which will be a repeat of their amazing feat last year in the Currie Cup final. That said, a loss with a bonus point or two may still earn them a playoff spot, providing that other results go their way.
Windhoek Draught Griquas will climb from fifth to third if they beat the defending champs. In that event, they will advance to the final four, regardless of what happens in later fixtures.
The Vodacom Bulls have won their past four matches and may fancy their chances against the Toyota Cheetahs at home. A loss would, in all likelihood, knock them out of the playoff race.
DHL WP needs to beat the Cell C Sharks – who are on a seven-game winning streak – to have any sort of chance of making the semi-finals. A bonus-point victory will boost their cause, although they do have a better points difference than the Vodacom Bulls and Windhoek Draught Griquas, and may advance ahead of those teams if they finish the league stage on the same number of log points.
The Fidelity ADT Lions need a big win against the NovaVit Griffons on Friday. The Northern Free Staters have lost 12 of their previous 13 matches.
The Johannesburg side could finish the league stage with 36 log points, provided that they secure a bonus-point win in Welkom. They will need every other fixture in the final round to go their way, with Windhoek Draught Griquas, the Vodacom Bulls and DHL WP losing their respective games – to have any chance of progressing to the semi-finals.
Match information:
Windhoek Draught Griquas v Airlink Pumas
Venue: Windhoek Draught Park, Kimberley
Date: Friday, 9 June
Time: 15h00
NovaVit Griffons v Fidelity ADT Lions
Venue: Down Touch Investments Stadium, Welkom
Date: Friday, 9 June
Time: 15h00
Vodacom Bulls v Toyota Cheetahs
Venue: Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
Date: Saturday, 10 June
Time: 15h00
DHL Western Province v Cell C Sharks
Venue: DHL Stadium, Cape Town
Date: Saturday, 10 June
Time: 17h00
