Pressure is mounting in the Currie Cup

With one league round remaining before the 2026 Carling Currie Cup Premier Division play-offs, this weekend’s penultimate round produced a significant shake-up in the standings, with Suzuki Griquas and Toyota Cheetahs securing home ground advantage in the semi-finals.

On Friday, defending champions Griquas recorded an emphatic 38-14 win over the Airlink Pumas in Nelspruit; the DHL Stormers XXIII kept their slim playoff hopes alive with a commanding 50-26 victory over the winless Vodacom Bulls XV in Pretoria; and the Hollywoodbets Sharks XV and Fidelity ADT Lions played out to a dramatic 22-22 draw in Pietermaritzburg.

Sunday’s final game of the round saw the Toyota Cheetahs secure their spot in the top two by defeating the Sanlam Boland Kavaliers 33-24 in Bloemfontein.

Griquas and the Cheetahs are both on 26 points after six matches and while they will host the two semi-finals, whoever takes top spot will be determined next weekend.

The race to the third and fourth will go down to the wire, with five teams still in it. The Pumas occupy third place on 17 points, the Kavaliers and Stormers XXIII are tied on 16 points, with the Lions on 15 and Sharks XV on 13 still retaining hopes of qualification. The Bulls XV languish in last position and have only five points form their six games.

Griquas produced arguably their finest display of the campaign to seal a home semi-final and underline why they remain favourites to retain the crown by beating the Pumas in Mbombela.

The men form Kimberley struck early when Zane Bester sliced through the defensive line to finish a superb individual effort. Matters worsened for the Pumas when Ruwald van der Merwe received a yellow card for head contact and Griquas immediately capitalised as Tiaan Lange crossed from a driving maul.

The defending champions continued to dominate the collisions and set piece. Lourens Oosthuizen added a third try after another powerful line-out platform before Clinton Swart gave the hosts brief hope with a converted score shortly before half-time. George Whitehead's penalty ensured Griquas took a commanding 24-7 lead into the break.

The second half followed a similar pattern. Gurshwin Wehr finished a sweeping attack after quick thinking from Bobby Alexander. Dylan Maart spent time in the sin bin for head contact, allowing the Pumas to respond through Junior Banda.

However, Jan-Henning Campher’s yellow card, later upgraded to red for a dangerous cleanout, effectively ended any hopes the hosts had of making a comeback. Bester then grabbed his second to cap a dominant afternoon for Griquas.

The Stormers XXIII revived their playoff aspirations with an impressive seven-try victory at Loftus Versfeld, condemning the Bulls XV to a sixth consecutive defeat, winning this encounter after leading 33-7 at the break.

Junior Bok midfielder Markus Muller opened the scoring for the visitors after a break from Mfundo Ndhlovu, before flyhalf Kyle Smith – who scored 20 points – added a second following slick handling and offloading.

Momentum swung decisively toward the Capetonians when former SA U20 prop Herman Lubbe crossed after another incisive attack. Junior Bok captain Siphosethu Mnebelele responded from a driving maul but a Bulls handling error gifted Joel Leotlela a fourth Stormers try, and to rub salt in the hosts’ wounds, Vernon Paulo crashed over from a tap penalty before the interval.

Any hopes of a Bulls revival suffered a setback when Abongile Nonkontwana was yellow-carded for a dangerous tackle shortly after half-time. The Stormers XXIII immediately exploited the numerical advantage as Leotlela completed his brace.

While Demitre Erasmus, Jon Hobson and Kebotile Maake crossed for the Bulls, Smith controlled proceedings expertly, adding a penalty and guiding Eric Basson over from a rolling maul to complete the rout. A late yellow card to Cornel Smit briefly reduced the visitors but the outcome was never in doubt as they closed out a vital victory.

In a contest packed with tension and play-off implications, the Sharks XV and Lions shared the spoils after a thrilling draw at Woodburn Stadium in Pietermaritzburg.

The hosts endured a difficult opening when Junior Bok wing Khuthi Rasivhaga was yellow-carded for making contact with a player in the air, yet they recovered through strong set-piece work and persistent pressure inside the Lions’ 22. Sharks captain Ross Braude eventually opened the scoring by darting around the blindside from a maul.

The Lions responded impressively as SA U20 loose forward Vuyo Gwiji powered over after sustained pressure, and Sam Francis' conversion gave the visitors a narrow 10-5 half-time advantage.

The Sharks XV struck back immediately after the interval as another Junior Bok, hooker Liam van Wyk, detached from a maul to score, before a brilliant counter-attack featuring Junior Bok and Blitzbok Luan Giliomee ended in a try to his national sevens teammate Christie Grobbelaar.

Refusing to fade, the Lions hit back through Armand Combrinck from a rolling maul to level scores at 17-17. The match then swung from end to end, with powerful Junior Bok midfielder Ethan Adams producing key turnovers for the Lions, with both sides threatening decisive scores.

An unconverted try by Meno Barnard gave the hosts the lead with time running out but with the clock in the red, Adams brilliantly combined with Gilermo Mentoe to level the scores. The conversion was unsuccessful and the teams had to share the spoils.

In the final match of the round staged on Sunday in Bloemfontein, the Cheetahs secured their semi-final place with a hard-earned victory over the Kavaliers, although the contest was far tighter than the final score suggested.

The visitors held a 10-7 lead at the halftime break but the Free Staters fought back to outscore their opponents by five tries to three, with Springbok scrumhalf Faf de Klerk again influential as he grabbed the Man of the Match accolade.

The Kavaliers dominated territory early and repeatedly tested the home team’s defence, only to be denied by turnovers and errors close to the line. The breakthrough eventually arrived in the 21st minute when Free State hooker Juan Smal finished from a driving maul, converted by Tiaan Swanepoel.

Boland responded impressively through Johnré Stopforth, who stretched over after sustained pressure, before Ashlon Davids edged the visitors ahead with a penalty shortly before the interval.

That advantage disappeared early in the second half when De Klerk's sharp break created the platform for Zander du Plessis to score, before Boland’s discipline collapsed, with Kwanda Dimaza, Chris Smit, Stopforth and Gift Dlamini all spending time in the sin bin, leaving the visitors severely undermanned.

The Cheetahs ruthlessly exploited the advantage. De Klerk crossed from close range before Michael Annies scored twice, including the bonus-point try. Boland showed admirable spirit through Joshua Eras and Bentley Geldenhuys but despite their late rally they were unable to secure a losing bonus point as the hosts closed out a crucial win, despite a late yellow card to Prince Nkabinde.

In next weekend’s final league round, the Lions host the Stormers XXIII on Friday at 5.05pm in Johannesburg, before the Sharks XV tackle the Bulls XV from 7.15pm in Durban.

On Saturday, the Cheetahs travel to Mbombela to face the Pumas at 2pm and at 3pm on Sunday in Wellington, the Sanlam Boland Kavaliers and Suzuki Griquas will complete the final match of the league phase of 2026.

Scores

Airlink Pumas (7) 14, Suzuki Griquas 38 (24)

Pumas – Tries: Clinton Swart, Junior Banda. Conversions: Swart (2).

Griquas – Tries: Zane Bester (2), Tiaan Lange, Lourens Oosthuizen, Gurshwin Wehr. Conversions: George Whitehead (4), Liam Koen. Penalty: Whitehead.

Vodacom Bulls XV 26 (7), DHL Stormers XXIII 50 (33)

Bulls XV – Tries: Siphosethu Mnebelele, Demitre Erasmus, Jon Hobson, Kebotile Maake. Conversions: Keagan Johannes (3).

Stormers XXIII – Tries: Markus Muller, Kyle Smith, Herman Lubbe, Joel Leotlela (2), Vernon Paulo, Eric Basson. Conversions: Kyle Smith (6). Penalty: Smith.

Hollywoodbets Sharks XV 22 (5), Fidelity ADT Lions 22 (10)

Sharks XV – Tries: Ross Braude, Liam van Wyk, Christie Grobbelaar, Meno Barnard. Conversion: Tim Swiel.

Lions – Tries: Vuyo Gwiji, Armand Combrinck, Gilermo Mentoe. Conversions: Sam Francis (2). Penalty: Francis.

Toyota Cheetahs 33 (7), Sanlam Boland Kavaliers 24 (10)

Cheetahs – Tries: Michael Annies (2), Juan Smal, Zander du Plessis, Faf de Klerk. Conversions: Tiaan Swanepoel (4).

Boland – Tries: Johnré Stopforth, Joshua Eras, Bentley Geldenhuys. Conversions: Ashlon Davids (3). Penalty: Davids.