The DHL Stormers and Emirates Lions will have everything to play for in the final pool round of the Vodacom United Rugby Championship on Saturday at 13:45 (SA Time) – when the SA Shield winner will also be determined – as they attempt to book the best possible log positions heading into the quarter-finals and attempt to secure their spots in the top eight in what is expected to be a thrilling round of local derbies.
Apart from determining the quarter-finalists, this round holds extra significance in that it will determine who clinches the SA Shield, with the Vodacom Bulls and DHL Stormers neck and neck at the moment, with the team from Pretoria holding a three-point edge on the log.
For the Emirates Lions, meanwhile, a victory and most likely with a bonus point will be essential to keep their playoff hopes alive.
The Cape Town derby is set to be a humdinger. While the DHL Stormers can’t finish outside the top-eight, they will want to enter the playoffs with momentum, while defeat to the Emirates Lions could see them drop down the standings for a tougher quarter-final.
The Emirates Lions, meanwhile, will want to repeat their fifth-round victory in 2021 in Cape Town. If they can do that and bag a bonus point, the men from Johannesburg could sneak into the top eight. They are currently tied on 49 log points with the eighth-placed Benetton and seventh-placed Edinburgh.
Given these stakes, neither team is set to give an inch.
Spicing up the clash, the Johannesburgers have a superior attacking record this season with a 63-point lead over the Capetonians, but the home side have been more effective on defence conceding 45 points fewer in their 17 matches to date.
The DHL Stormers will draw inspiration from the fact that they only suffered one defeat at home this season in the tournament – against Ospreys – but with both teams desperate for a victory, it could prove to be a tight match.
DHL Stormers flank Ben-Jason Dixon will make his 50th appearance. The hard-working Dixon features in an unchanged back row alongside Hacjivah Dayimani and Evan Roos, while there is an all-new front row of props Neethling Fouche and Sti Sithole and hooker Andre-Hugo Venter.
In the backline Wandisile Simelane comes in at outside centre, with Dan du Plessis inside him to replace the injured Damian Willemse. Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu starts at fullback with Warrick Gelant being rested as a precaution due to a slight niggle.
There is plenty of experience on the replacements bench with the two most-capped DHL Stormers of all time Brok Harris and Frans Malherbe set to make an impact up front in the second half, while wing Ben Loader makes his return from injury.
Director of Rugby John Dobson said that his team is focused on taking some winning momentum into the play-offs.
“We have three solid wins under our belts and it is vital that we build on that in front of what will be a big crowd at DHL Stadium.
“We may have secured our place in the play-offs already, but this is a fantastic opportunity for us to make improvements to our game in the cauldron of a South African derby, which should be ideal preparation for the knock-out phase of the competition,” he said.
Willem Alberts will lead the Emirates Lions in the must-win match. Only one change was made, Jordan Hendrikse partners with Erich Cronje in the midfield while Rabz Maxwane retained the 14 jersey with Richard Kriel still nursing a hamstring injury. Ruan Venter was not considered for selection due to suspension.
Teams:
DHL Stormers: 15 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, 14 Suleiman Hartzenberg, 13 Wandisile Simelane, 12 Dan du Plessis, 11 Angelo Davids, 10 Manie Libbok, 9 Herschel Jantjies, 8 Hacjivah Dayimani, 7 Ben-Jason Dixon, 6 Evan Roos, 5 Ruben van Heerden, 4 Salmaan Moerat (c), 3 Neethling Fouche, 2 Andre-Hugo Venter, 1 Sti Sithole. Replacements: 16 Joseph Dweba, 17 Brok Harris, 18 Frans Malherbe, 19 Adre Smith, 20 Marcel Theunissen, 21 Stefan Ungerer, 22 Jean-Luc du Plessis, 23 Ben Loader.
Emirates Lions: 15 Quan Horn, 14 Rabz Maxwane, 13 Erich Cronje, 12 Jordan Hendrikse, 11 Edwill van der Merwe, 10 Sanele Nohamba, 9 Morne van den Berg, 8 Francke Horn, 7 Emmanuel Tshituka, 6 JC Pretorius, 5 Ruan Delport, 4 Willem Alberts (c), 3 Asenathi Ntlabakanye, 2 PJ Botha, 1 Morgan Naude. Replacements: 16 Jaco Visagie, 17 JP Smith, 18 Ruan Dreyer, 19 Etienne Oosthuizen, 20 Reinhard Nothnagel, 21 Izan Eseterhuizen, 22 Marius Louw, 23 Gianni Lombard.