Durban — The pressure on the Sharks and Bulls in the United Rugby Championship will strike a new level this weekend as the race for playoff spots moves up a few notches with just four rounds left to the playoffs.
Going into this weekend’s two South African derbies, the Stormers are in second place on the standings and are home and dry for a quarter-final while the 12th placed Lions dropped out of the race long ago. But in between are the Sharks in seventh place on 40 points and Bulls just above them on 41 points, and it is these two teams that will be fighting for their lives when they visit the Stormers and host the Lions respectively.
The Lions can do the Sharks a huge favour by shocking the Bulls at Loftus because almost nobody is giving the Durbanites a chance of upsetting the Stormers at Cape Town Stadium, a venue they have made an impregnable fortress.
Also, the champions will be keen to make the most of their home-ground advantage to stay ahead of the chasing pack – especially with third-placed Ulster trailing them by only five points – for a possible home semi-final later in the competition.
The Stormers have won 14 straight matches at Cape Town Stadium since their defeat to the Lions in December 2021. That was their first URC match at the stadium and they have not lost since.
The Sharks’ chances of victory there remain unrealistic because, in terms of personnel, not a great deal has changed for them since the Stormers whacked then 46-19 in Durban a month ago.
Neil Powell’s team were overwhelmed in the tight exchanges by their opponents and with the Springboks still off-limits to their provinces, it is hard to see how the Sharks can turn things around.
Last week, against Ulster, the Sharks’ forwards were again exposed and the Irishmen scored three comfortable maul tries through the flimsy forwards' defence.
The Capetonians boast a better record on attack and defence than a Sharks side whose chief weapon is desperation.
The Sharks have three games left after their visit to the Cape in which to make the top eight, which is vital also because it means qualification for next season’s Champions Cup.
After this weekend, the Sharks travel to Scarlets and then host first Munster and then Benetton.