The 2024 Black Label Currie Cup playoffs are on the horizon and the stage for the Blue Bulls, Sharks, Golden Lions, and defending champions Free State Cheetahs is finally set for Saturday.
What has been an exhilarating and electrifying Currie Cup season has now come down to four of the best teams.
The first semi-final will be the “catfight” derby between the Lions and Cheetahs at the Ellis Park Stadium at 3pm.
The big one will be later in the evening, which will see the Bulls collide with the Sharks at the Loftus Versfeld Stadium at 5pm.
The two sides will be meeting again in the space of six days, which saw the Sharks win it by a fine margin with a scoreline of 24-18 last week Sunday.
Ahead of the blockbuster, Bulls centre Lionel Mapoe says the team is pumped up to get their revenge, as they cannot afford to lose to the same team back to back.
We’ve planned accordingly
“People saw last week what happened last week, so this one is going to be big but close too,” Mapoe told Sunday World on Friday.
“We got a look at last week’s footage, so we know what we have to fix and work on. Last week’s game was rainy and wet, but tomorrow [Saturday] it will probably be sunny and work to our advantage.
“So, I believe that we’ve planned accordingly, and we will try to execute everything that we trained during the week.”
Having already played in the United Rugby Championship (URC) final and succumbed to a shocking 21-16 defeat to Scotland’s Glasgow Warriors, Mapoe emphasised the importance of playing in another final and finally delivering the Currie Cup after three years.
“It will be very important for us to win this trophy because it will also form part of our preparations for the next URC because we regard it very highly.
“So, for us mentally, to win the oldest rugby competition will be very important building up to the next URC season,” he added.
