The DHL Stormers were the only South African side to come away with a victory in the second round of the Vodacom United Rugby Championship this weekend, as the Emirates Lions, Hollywoodbets Sharks and Vodacom Bulls all came up short in the Northern Hemisphere.
The DHL Stormers will be looking to build on their strong start to the third season of the Vodacom United Rugby Championship when they host Scarlets on Saturday – the only game in South Africa with the Hollywoodbets Sharks, Emirates Lions and Vodacom Bulls playing abroad.
The DHL Stormers, Cell C Sharks and Vodacom Bulls will have everything to play for on Saturday in a tough round of Vodacom United Rugby Championship quarter-finals – their biggest challenge of the season so far.
The Emirates Lions and DHL Stormers pulled off admirable results in the Vodacom United Rugby Championship this weekend, and although the Cell C Sharks and Vodacom Bulls lost, all four South African teams are still in the race to earn spots in the playoffs.
The South African Vodacom United Rugby Championship franchises will be wary of the fact that a massive effort will be required to topple the opposition in crucial matches for their playoff hopes when they return to the field in the big north versus south showpiece this weekend.
The Cell C Sharks team to meet Ulster in their rescheduled round six Vodacom United Rugby Championship match at Hollywoodbets Kings Park on Saturday shows minimal changes to the side that defeated the Emirates Lions last weekend.
The Cell C Sharks and Emirates Lions will be determined to capitalise on their home ground advantage on Saturday when they take the field in their postponed round six Vodacom United Rugby Championship fixtures against Ulster and the Glasgow Warriors, with an eye on powering their way up the log with the end of the pool stages in sight.
Should Saturday be Duane Vermeulen’s last club outing in South Africa, how fitting that it would be in Cape Town and in front of the biggest crowd to ever watch a rugby match at Cape Town Stadium. It would be the perfect salute to one of South Africa and Cape Town’s favourite rugby sons.
France-based Springbok playmaker Dillyn Leyds has tipped the Vodacom Bulls and Stormers to contest the Vodacom United Rugby Championship final.
Duane Vermeulen says he could have stayed at the Vodacom Bulls, but chose to join Irish side Ulster rather than being “stuck in one place”.