Drama on the cards as Vodacom URC league phase concludes
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The DHL Stormers have already locked in home ground advantage for the quarter-finals, but the Vodacom Bulls and Fidelity Securedrive Lions will go flat out in their final Vodacom United Rugby Championship pool matches this weekend to ensure they are also playing their top-eight encounters at home.
On Friday night, the second-placed DHL Stormers – currently on 59 points, one behind log-leaders the Glasgow Warriors – will line up against the seventh-placed Cardiff in the Welsh capital, where the Capetonians have never won.
Three matches will be played on Saturday. The fourth-placed Vodacom Bulls (54 points) take on the 13th-placed Benetton in Pretoria, and the fifth-placed Fidelity Securedrive Lions (53 points) cross paths with the sixth-placed Munster in Ireland in matches that will be decisive in their final log positions going into the quarter-finals.
In the other match, the 10th-placed Hollywoodbets Sharks will meet the last-placed Zebre Parma in their closing match of the competition, after both sides dropped out of the playoff race earlier in the preceding rounds.
While the DHL Stormers are assured of a home quarter-final regardless of their result this weekend, securing the highest log positions possible with an eye on the first playoff round will be a strong driving force for the Gauteng sides, in a round which will see heartbreak for one of the sides between fifth and ninth-place on the standings who are only separated by four log points.
The DHL Stormers will give everything they have at Cardiff Arms Park, especially given the high stakes with Cardiff playing for survival in the competition to hold off the strong challenge posed by the Fidelity Securedrive Lions, Ulster, and Connacht.
On paper, the Capetonians will enter the match as favourites with a superior attack and defence, while they will also draw inspiration from their dramatic draw against Ulster away last week.
But the DHL Stormers will certainly not underestimate the threat posed by Cardiff, who have suffered only one defeat at home in the tournament to date, and who will have a passionate home crowd behind them. The Welsh team’s desperation will be fuelled by the fact that a defeat could see their quarter-final hopes squashed, which sets the scene for a captivating encounter.
In Durban, the Hollywoodbets Sharks will be determined to build on their resounding victory against Benetton when they take on Zebre Parma at Hollywoodbets Kings Park to put up one last big show for their passionate supporters as the curtain draws down on their campaign.
With a far more effective attack and defence, and the KwaZulu-Natalians having the luxury of home ground advantage, they will have all the motivation they need to deliver another strong performance to finish the league stages with a big victory.
The Vodacom Bulls, meanwhile, will have everything to play for with a home quarter-final at stake in their match against Benetton at Loftus Versfeld, and even a possible top two finish if the DHL Stormers and Leinster slip up and they register a bonus-point victory.
There is no doubt the Hollywoodbets Sharks’ dismantling the Italians last week, will give the men from Pretoria extra confidence going into the match.
The Vodacom Bulls – nine log positions above their visitors and having scored an impressive 521 points to 308 by Benetton, while they also boast a better defensive record – will be determined to finish the pool stages with an impressive six wins in a row and build the momentum and confidence they need going into the playoffs.
The Fidelity Securedrive Lions, in turn, will have the luxury of knowing exactly what they need to do to secure a home quarter-final for the first time in the cross-hemisphere series when they line up against Munster at Thomond Park in the closing match of the round on Saturday night in Limerick.
The Johannesburgers may be in pole position between the fifth and ninth-placed teams to finish in the top eight as they hold a valuable two-point lead on the table over Munster, but depending on the other results this weekend, they may find themselves having to secure at least two log points to finish in the top eight.
They will also be determined to put their frustrating defeat against Leinster last week behind them, which brought their six-match winning run to an end, and regain their winning momentum, especially with a likely quarter-final coming up.
The Fidelity Securedrive Lions will enter the final round with the second-best attack in the competition, which has seen them score 143 points more than Munster, but they will be mindful of the fact that the Irishmen have conceded 90 points fewer and have a favourable home win record.
The hosts will also want to make amends for their disappointing defeat against Connacht last week, paving the way for an epic encounter.
Match Information:
Cardiff v DHL Stormers
Date: Friday, 15 May
Venue: Cardiff Arms Park, Cardiff
SA Time: 20h45
Referee: Andrew Brace
TV: SuperSport
Hollywoodbets Sharks v Zebre Parma
Date: Saturday, 16 May
Venue: Hollywoodbets Kings Park, Durban
SA Time: 13h45
Referee: Adam Jones
TV: SuperSport
Vodacom Bulls v Benetton
Date: Saturday, 16 May
Venue: Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
SA Time: 16h00
Referee: Craig Evans
TV: SuperSport
Munster v Fidelity Securedrive Lions
Date: Saturday, 16 May
Venue: Thomond Park, Limerick
SA Time: 20h45
Referee: Andrea Piardi
TV: SuperSport
