Momentum crucial as Vodacom URC pool stages conclude

South Africa’s three Vodacom United Rugby Championship quarterfinalists, the Vodacom Bulls, Hollywoodbets Sharks, and DHL Stormers, will have their sights set on building winning momentum with an eye on the playoffs as the curtain drops on the pool stages this weekend, while the Emirates Lions will look to wrap up their campaign on a high note.

The Bulls will be guaranteed a second-place finish if they don’t lose their final pool match, but they will be fully aware of the need to maintain winning momentum with a home quarterfinal already lined up.

The Sharks will do everything in their power to leap into third place above the Glasgow Warriors, who face off against log-leaders Leinster; and the Stormers will be determined to hold onto their fifth place standing for an easier route to the Grand Final should these teams emerge as one of the last two standing in the cross-hemisphere spectacle.

The Stormers will kick off the weekend’s action on Friday against Cardiff in Cape Town, while a jam-packed Saturday awaits as the Bulls take on the Dragons in Pretoria, the Lions host the Ospreys in Johannesburg, and the Sharks meet the Scarlets in Durban.

In Cape Town, the Stormers will enter their match against Cardiff as the overwhelming favourites with home ground advantage and three successive victories in the competition to their name, to add to the fact that they will be high on confidence after securing their quarter-final spot last weekend.

The Capetonians will also draw inspiration from the fact that the Welsh outfit have only won three away games this season, but they will be careful about underestimating the ninth-placed opposition who still have one last shot of sneaking into the playoffs, as the seventh and eighth-placed Benetton and Munster will battle it out with one another, while the 10th placed Edinburgh could also still make the top eight of they beat Ulster and a few other results go their way.

Interestingly, the Stormers have won only one more match than Cardiff this season, but they will bank on their better attacking and defensive record to carry them through to a 10th victory in the competition.

The Bulls, meanwhile, will enter their clash against the last-placed Dragons with the odds stacked heavily in their favour after coming off six consecutive wins in the tournament and only one defeat at Loftus Versfeld this season.

With 167 more points scored than the Dragons and 236 fewer points conceded in their 17 matches to date, they will have all the confidence they need to come away with their 14th victory of the season, to build their confidence with an eye on the quarterfinals.

The men from Pretoria will, however, be cognisant of the fact that the Stormers had to work hard for their victory against the same Welsh outfit last week, where they entered the break only 14-0 up.

DESPERATE FOR A WIN

The Lions will have all the makings of a desperate team to finish their season on a positive note against the Ospreys at Emirates Airline Park after suffering four defeats in their last five Vodacom URC outings – the last of which was a heart-wrenching 32-19 defeat against the Scarlets.

The Johannesburgers will also be wary of the threat the Scarlets pose, especially given the fact that they showed guts against the Sharks last week to trail by 14-3 at the break before a strong second half by the Durbanites sealed them a 29-10 victory.

Spicing up the clash, both teams have won seven round-robin games, and while the Ospreys have a better attacking record, the Lions have been marginally better on defence, which should set the scene for a thrilling encounter as both sides wrap up their campaigns.

In Durban, the Sharks will have all the motivation they need emerge victorious against the sixth-placed Scarlets, but they will be wary of the fact that the visitors come off a morale-boosting victory against the Lions, while they also went down by fewer than seven points in four of their five away games to add to a draw, which could pave the way for a mighty battle.

That said, the KwaZulu-Natalians come off three vital victories in a row – only one of which was at home – and they will be well aware of the fact that they need to improve on their performance against the Ospreys last week to deliver the standard of rugby required to secure a semi-final berth at the end of the month.

Zooming into the statistics, however, the Sharks will have to deliver a top-drawer performance because despite winning three more matches than the sixth-placed opposition, both teams have scored 424 points apiece in their 17 matches so far, while the Durbanites have conceded only 29 points fewer on defence, meaning they will have to be on form from the outset to walk away with a win.

Match Information:

DHL Stormers v Cardiff

Date: Friday, 16 May

Venue: DHL Stadium, Cape Town

SA Time: 7pm

Referee: Gianluca Gnecchi

TV: SuperSport

Vodacom Bulls v Dragons

Date: Saturday, 17 May

Venue: Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria

SA Time: 3pm

Referee: Andrew Brace

TV: SuperSport

Emirates Lions v Ospreys

Date: Saturday, 17 May

Venue: Emirates Airline Park, Johannesburg

SA Time: 5.15pm

Referee: Eoghan Cross

TV: SuperSport

Hollywoodbets Sharks v Scarlets

Date: Saturday, 17 May

Venue: Hollywoodbets Kings Park, Durban

SA Time: 7.30pm

Referee: Andrea Piardi

TV: SuperSport