While it’s the final round-robin stage of the United Rugby Championship (URC), it will be an emotional weekend in South African rugby after the untimely passing of former Springbok Cornal Hendricks.
He was a teammate to plenty of players running out for the four SA franchises, whether at the Boks, Blitzboks, Bulls, Boland, or Cheetahs.
With the knockout places secured for the Bulls, Sharks and Stormers, this weekend’s clashes will see the quarter-final duels sorted. There is still an opportunity for a coastal derby in one of the final four matches, but that will only become clear on Saturday evening when defending champions the Glasgow Warriors face Leinster.
For now, the Sharks’ concentration will be on putting in a strong performance at home on Saturday against the Scarlets to grab third place on the overall URC log and put pressure on the Warriors. The third spot could still guarantee a home semi-final for the Durbanites.
The Stormers, on the other hand, selected a ‘weakened’ side for their final game on Friday evening. Director of rugby John Dobson explained that he wants to give some of his regulars a breather to keep them fresh for the quarters. It could cost them some momentum against a desperate Cardiff, but the squad is still strong enough to perform at its peak in front of the home crowd.
It will be a sombre atmosphere at Loftus Versfeld where the Bulls will say farewell to Hendricks, a much-loved figure in their squad before he moved back to his home union in the Western Cape. There will be a minute of silence for the speedster, while flags at the stadium will fly at half-mast.
The Bulls can secure second place, which could guarantee a home game until the semi-finals at least, with a victory, while they will also want to put out a statement performance ahead of the play-offs. They are in a prime position to go all the way this season after three tournaments almost claiming the title.
In Johannesburg, the Lions can only play to salvage some pride when they face the Ospreys in their last game of the season. It has been a disappointing ending to their promising campaign, but they would want to end on a high against their Welsh opponents.
