GAME DAY I Bok boosts tilt URC derbies in favour of Bulls, Stormers
South African rugby supporters are in for a Saturday afternoon treat when the Stormers host the Sharks and the Bulls the Lions in URC derbies.
Saturday's highly anticipated URC derbies in Pretoria and Cape Town feature a significant infusion of Springboks into the Stormers and Bulls squads. Both teams had recently lost matches overseas, prompting them to rest their Bok players, with the intention of fielding them for these crucial matchups against the Sharks and Lions.
Meanwhile, the Sharks and Lions showcased impressive performances in their opening rounds, with the Sharks leading the 16-team standings with a full 10-point tally and the Lions in third place with nine points.
The Sharks, known for their aggressive play style, will be facing the Stormers at Loftus Versfeld at 1:30pm. The early kick-off is scheduled to avoid potential thunderstorms due to the approaching summer rainy season. Despite the travel-related challenges and illnesses faced by several Bulls players, the team is bolstered by influential players such as Handre Pollard, Canan Moodie, Cameron Hanekom, and others, making a Bulls victory seem likely, but not guaranteed.
In Cape Town at 4pm, the Stormers will once again be reinforced with seven Springboks, including Damiaan Willemse at fullback and Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu at flyhalf. This matchup is particularly significant as the Sharks aim to gauge their progress and performance in the URC season, having only completed two rounds. The Stormers are predicted to win by a margin of seven points or less.
Written by urgent.news from IOL's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
