CELL C SHARKS VS AIRLINK PUMAS JUNE 17 2023

CHANGING THE GAME

is a team effort.

SIYA KOLISI - RUGBY

MESSAGE PRESIDENT OF SA RUGBY

Welcome to this exciting meeting in the 2023 edition of the Currie Cup, the premier provincial competition on the South African rugby landscape at a time when the process of re-aligning the local season with the northern hemisphere is well underway.

As the oldest provincial rugby competition in the world, the Currie Cup has always provided a magnificent pathway for players to show they have what it takes to step up to high-intensity action at the top level.

As always, we are looking forward to our provincial teams again unearthing the next generation of Springbok stars by providing playing opportunities to the best local talent.

The iconic Currie Cup is about respectful rivalry, provincial passion, ambition, pride and community, with local support always at very high levels.

And then there’s the captivating drama and intrigue associated with the Currie Cup, with eight teams fighting it out for top honours this year after the NovaVit Griffons joined the Premier Division after winning the First Division in 2022.

Will the Airlink Pumas be able to repeat their massive achievement from last year when they defeated Windhoek Draught Griquas in a pulsating final in Kimberley, or will the traditional powerhouses of the competition, DHL Western Province, the

Vodacom Bulls and Cell C Sharks flex their muscles once again?

The Toyota Cheetahs are always a threat especially at home in Bloemfontein, the Fidelity ADT Lions will be looking to make a massive step up and push hard for the final towards the end of June, and the newly promoted NovaVit Griffons will no doubt will be very happy to be back in the Premier Division.

Another exciting competition awaits and the big question is, who will step up this year to lift the coveted gold trophy at the final on Saturday, 24 June?

Good luck to all the teams for what promises to be an exciting and challenging double round of action, culminating in the playoffs late in June.

I’d also like to thank our broadcast partner, SuperSport and all our other stakeholders for their continued support, as well as all the team partners who invest in the local game, ensuring we can deliver a top-class product week in and week out.

Thank you also to everyone who continue to work hard behind the scenes to make the 2023 edition of the Currie Cup a reality. And good luck to all the players, coaches, management staff and volunteers for their various contributions to ensure this remain our premier local provincial competition.

MARK ALEXANDER President: SA Rugby

C SHARKS VS AIRLINK PUMAS

CELL C PROUDLY SUPPORTS THE SHARKS

MATCH PREVIEW

JOURNEY TO GLORY

WORDS: ALBERT HEENOP

The Cell C Sharks embarked on a journey, three months ago, with a new coach, in Joey Mongalo, and squad of mostly young charges. Following a somewhat haphazard start, this team found the necessary character and cohesion to win 10 of their 14 games, of which seven on the trot, to qualify for today’s Currie Cup semi-final against the Pumas at home. And, for captain Reniel Hugo and his “group of desperate men”, the journey is not over; the Cell C Sharks want to go all the way…

From the outset, the biggest challenge that faced Joey Mongalo’s Currie Cup squad was to find cohesion, as well as consistency, as swiftly as possible.

Disruptions due to the ongoing Heineken Champions Cup and Vodacom United Rugby Championship tournaments complicated matters initially, and the first half of the Cell C Sharks’ Currie Cup campaign followed a ‘consistent’ win-lose pattern.

In early April, Mongalo’s men first came up against the defending champions, the Pumas, whom they are hosting again today in the semi-finals, and the Cell C Sharks grinded out an inspirational 19-12 win in The Shark Tank.

“This is a group that is starting to believe

in each other and the journey that this team is on,” Mongalo observed at the time. “This win does give us enormous confidence, and I’m hoping that this confidence will breed more and more belief.

“This group is probably one win away from understanding just how good they can possibly be.”

The important win that Mongalo alluded to followed a fortnight later against the Cheetahs, who would end up top of the standings in this year’s domestic showcase. In addition, the 24-17 victory, which saw the boys having to weather a fierce second half comeback from the Cheetahs, was their first away win in this year’s tournament.

However, consistency still eluded the Cell C Sharks at that stage, prompting Mongalo

to state that “if we can somehow string together a series of wins, it will make a massive difference.”

The team obliged and went on to win no fewer than seven matches in a row, which included another profound, bonus-point victory away from home, pipping the Pumas 24-22 in Mbombela.

“The fight in the last 10 minutes or so was the one highlight from the game,” admitted Mongalo, although the overall performance was still somewhat below par.

“We are growing in cohesion and that is why we can still win games like the one against the Pumas; good teams can still win games, even though they might play poorly.”

ON

The Cell C Sharks have thus beaten the defending champions on both occasions during the regular season this year, and are fizzing to make it three in a row in the semifinal at Hollywoodbets Kings Park tonight.

Captain Reniel Hugo, nevertheless, is fully aware that his team again have a huge battle on their hands today.

“The Pumas are defending champions and will be hungry,” he said at a press conference earlier this week.

“The Pumas pride themselves on the set piece, they are well coached by Jimmy Stonehouse and they are a hard, physical team. They also have X-factor players like Devon Williams at the back, and guys who are good at the kicking game.

“You can’t rest for a single minute against a team like the Pumas, and not expect to be hurt by that.

“We are fortunate, though, to be playing in front of our fans.

“We are a group of desperate men, and we want to go all the way in the Currie Cup.”

THIS IS A GROUP THAT IS STARTING TO BELIEVE IN EACH OTHER AND THE JOURNEY THAT THIS TEAM IS

CELL C SHARKS

AIRLINK PUMAS

DEVON WILLIAMS

ANDREW KOTA

DIEGO APPOLLIS

ALI MGIJIMA

ETIENNE TALJAARD

TINUS DE BEER

CHRISWILL SEPTEMBER

KWANDA DIMAZA

FRANNA KLEINHANS

ANDRE FOUCHE

SHANE KIRKWOOD (C)

DEON SLABBERT

SIMON RAW

PJ JACOBS

CORNE FOURIE

DARNELL OSUAGWA

ETIENNE JANEKE

DEWALD MARITZ

MALEMBE MPOFU

RUWALD VAN DER MERWE

GIOVAN SNYMAN

GENE WILLEMSE

WIAN VAN NIEKERK

REFEREE

GRIFFON COLBY & PAUL MENTE TMO

QUINTON IMMELMAN

HEAD COACH

JIMMY STONEHOUSE

MANAGER

SAMUEL SIKIWE

MBATHA VS JACOBS MAJOR MATCHUP

With a current tally of six touchdowns already to his name, Fez Mbatha is one of the top try-scorers in this year’s Currie Cup competition.

It is quite an accomplishment for the hooker dynamo of the Cell C Sharks, considering that the other four top try-scorers are all backs.

Coach Joey Mongalo has already gone on record stating that 23-year-old Mbatha has the potential to represent South Africa at RWC 2027.

“There is no reason he can’t become a future Springbok,” Mongalo observed. Hailing from Esikhawini near Empangeni, Mbatha was South Africa’s firstchoice hooker at the 2019 World Rugby U20 Championship and already invited to a Springbok alignment camp, prior to the 2021 British & Irish Lions series.

Pumas hooker PJ Jacobs forms a formidable front row with the highly experienced Corné Fourie, who is also a highly capable hooker, alongside him in the loosehead prop position.

Both can be expected to play key roles in the huge forward battle anticipated today.

Jacobs (23), who recorded a hat-trick of tries in the Pumas’ 64-6 annihilation of the Griffons recently, signed with the Pumas Rugby Institute last year. Educated at Monument, Jacobs represented the Lions as a loose forward at the U18 Craven Week in 2016 and 2017, and it was only when he transferred to the Bulls after school that he shifted to hooker.

Interestingly, Jacobs used to be quite an accomplished, long-distance goalkicker, too, at school.

CUP LOG CURRIE CUP FIXTURES / RESULTS

HOME HOLLYWOODBETS KINGS PARK, DURBAN

AWAY TAFEL LAGER PARK, KIMBERLEY

HOME HOLLYWOODBETS KINGS PARK, DURBAN

AWAY EMIRATES AIRLINE PARK, JHB

HOME HOLLYWOODBETS KINGS PARK, DURBAN

HOME HOLLYWOODBETS KINGS PARK, DURBAN

AWAY TOYOTA STADIUM, BLOEMFONTEIN

HOME HOLLYWOODBETS KINGS PARK, DURBAN

AWAY LOFTUS VERSFELD, PRETORIA

AWAY MBOMBELA STADIUM, NELSPRUIT

HOME HOLLYWOODBETS KINGS PARK, DURBAN

AWAY DOWN TOUCH INVESTMENT STADIUM, WELKOM

AWAY EMIRATES AIRLINE PARK, JHB

AWAY DHL STADIUM, CPT

APPAREL SPONSOR

STADIUM SPONSOR

ASSOCIATE SPONSORS

MEDIA PARTNERS

OFFICIAL PARTNERS

MEDICAL SPONSORS

DEVELOPMENT SPONSORS

ACADEMY SPONSORS

STADIUM PARTNERS

CLUB COMPETITION SPONSORS

CLUB SPONSORS