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By Renaldo BothmaThis Currie Cup First Division round up from the penultimate weekend of league action told us everything we needed to know about who is serious and who is running out of time. Three matches, three very different stories — and with one round left before the playoffs, the picture is almost complete.
Let me start with SWD, because what they did at Outeniqua Park on Saturday was genuinely impressive. An 87-17 hammering of Border is not just a scoreline — it is a statement of intent. Thirteen tries to three, leading 40-5 at halftime, with Rosco Syster finishing with a hat-trick and Nico Leonard and Rune Lucas both crossing twice. As a former No. 8 who has played in tight, physical Currie Cup First Division rugby, I know how hard it is to keep that intensity for 80 minutes against any professional opposition. SWD did not let up. Divan du Toit and Fred Zeilinga shared kicking duties and barely missed, and the scoreboard just kept ticking. They remain unbeaten, sitting top of the standings on 20 points, and right now I do not see anyone stopping them from hosting a semi-final.
The more significant result for the playoff picture, though, might be Eastern Province's composed 22-12 win over the defending champions, the Griffons, in Gqeberha. EP now sit second on 15 points, and they did it the right way — controlling the contest, responding every time the Griffons threatened, and finishing strongly when it mattered. Maxwell Klaasen opened with a penalty, the Griffons edged ahead through Rian Olivier's converted try, but CJ Velleman's score put EP back in front before halftime. When Chad Tshimanga crossed for the Griffons early in the second half, the missed conversion kept the door open just enough. EP walked through it. Liyema Matyolweni and Lwandile Mapuko both scored in the final quarter to seal it. That is the hallmark of a team that knows what it is doing.
Then there was the chaos in Potchefstroom, and I mean that in the best possible way. The Leopards edged the Valke 48-45 in a match that had everything — seven tries for the Leopards, eight for the Valke, a yellow card for Valke scrumhalf Wernich Aucamp in the 15th minute, and a lead that changed hands throughout. Kelvin Kanenungo's late brace for the Valke set up a genuinely tense finish, but Gcino Mdletshe scored a converted try in the 77th minute to put the Leopards over the line. For the Leopards it keeps a slim semi-final hope alive on 10 points, though they will need results to go their way. For the Valke, sitting third on 13 points, the defeat stings — but they still control their own destiny heading into the final round.