Results In Round Three Of The SARU u/21 Cup Could Upset The Apple Cart

 

The 2022 SARU u/20 cup is played in a single-round format. A loss against the "wrong" team could cost you a place in the semi-finals scheduled for 15 October 2022, making round 3 to be played this weekend very important and exciting.

The past weekend’s results saw the Bulls increase their log-leading tally to 10 points from two wins, five more than WP, who are in second place and six more than the Lions, who are third on the log with four points. The Leopards (3 points) and Sharks (1 point), who had a bye the past weekend, complete the league table, while the Toyota Cheetahs will kick off their campaign this weekend at home against the Leopards.

The withdrawal of Eastern Province u/21 meant that the Toyota Free State u/21 will play in their first match of the season when they host the Leopards u/21 who will play in their third match of the competition.

The first match of the weekend is when the Lions u/21 will host DHL Western Province u/21 at Airlines Emirates Park on Friday at 12h00. The hosts are currently unbeaten after narrowly escaping a loss against the Leopards u/21 in Potchefstroom a week ago while their visitors will know that another loss could prove to be costly at the end of the season. DHL Western Province u/21 were surprisingly bullied by a dominating u/21 Vodacom Bulls pack of forwards in wet conditions in Stellenbosch. It is expected that one or two of the u/21 Lions players may be missing this match as they might be part of the Emirates Lions URC squad that will play against the Cell C Sharks URC squad that will face each other later on Friday.

The Vodacom Bulls u/21 will host the Sharks u/21 at Loftus Versveld on Saturday at 12h00. The Vodacom Bulls u/21 will be full of confidence, however, injuries might be a problem for this fixture. The Cell C Sharks u/21 lost to the DHL Western Province u/21 two weeks ago and we can expect a backlash from them making it extremely difficult for their hosts on Saturday.

The Toyota Free State u/21 host the Leopards u/21 at 13h00 in Bloemfontein on Saturday. It will be the first match of the season for the Toyota Cheetahs u/21 while the Leopards u/21 already showed that they are a great team that might just need only the bounce of the ball to score their first win of the season. A loss against the Toyota Free State u/21 will be the end of the road for the Leopards u/21's playoff dreams as they are still looking for their first win of the season.