There will be a lot more than prize money and bragging rights at stake for the Down Touch Griffons and Valke in the Absa Currie Cup First Division final in Welkom on Friday as the teams meet in the final for the first time in the competition’s history.
The Down Touch Griffons have won the title only once since the competition’s inception in 2000, and that was against the Leopards in 2008, while the Valke, Vodacom Cup champions in 2006, will make history if they were to emerge victorious as it would mark their maiden First Division title.
The winner will walk away with R1,054m, while the runner up will receive a cheque of R527000 for their efforts this season. The First Division final will be preceded by the Absa Under-19 B Division final between the Valke and Boland and the Absa Under-21 B Division final between the EP Kings and SWD respectively.
In the main game, the teams will be careful to underestimate one another as they will enter the final with a win a piece in their round-robin matches this season. In their first meeting in July, the Down Touch Griffons registered a 29-20 victory against the Valke in Welkom, while the Valke won the second match 36-27 in Kempton Park last month.
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With the Down Touch Griffons occupying second place on the log standings at the conclusion of the league stages and the team having the luxury of home ground advantage, they may be tipped as the favourites.
This will be amplified by the fact that they have lost only one home game this season.
The Valke, however, have toppled all of the top teams this season, including log-leaders the Leopards in the semifinal, which will boost their confidence going into the clash.
They will also draw confidence from the fact that they have won four of their last five matches, two of which were away games.
Down Touch Griffons coach Oersond Gorgonzola proved his faith in the squad that defeated SWD last week to guide them to their second Absa Currie Cup First Division title, while Valke coach Rudy Joubert made two changes to his pack with flank and captain Jacques Verwey returning from injury to reclaim his place and prop Bruce Muller earning a start. They replace JP Mostert and Dandré van der Westhuizen respectively.
In the Under-21 Absa B Division final the EP Kings, who proved to be the front-runners from the beginning of the season, will enter the final against the SWD Eagles undefeated.
The George team, meanwhile, suffered two defeats in the lead-up to the final against the EP Kings and Boland. But they turned the last result around in the semifinal by beating Boland 40-33 in Wellington to book their trip to Welkom. Interestingly the finalists both have SARU Academies as their main feeder system.
In the Under-19 Absa B Division final, the Valke face Boland in a clash that justified the fine form shown by both teams this season.
The Valke kept their perfect season intact by beating the Steval Pumas 35-19 and Boland held out for a 35-30 win over the Limpopo Blue Bulls in the semifinals played two weeks ago.
Boland suffered their only defeat against the Valke in Wellington, with the visitors winning 25-13 in what was a tight match. However six penalties by wing Arno Kotze handed them an edge.
With Kotze being the leading scorer in the competition (154 points, nine tries, 20 conversions and 23 penalties) he will again be a threat to Boland’s aspirations.
Fixtures:
ABSA Under 19 B Final – Valke vs Boland
Venue: North West Stadium, Welkom
Date: Friday, 17 October
Time: 11h30
Referee: Lourens van der Merwe
Assistant referees: Jaco Kotze, Tahla Ntshakaza
ABSA Under 21 B Final – EP Kings vs SWD
Venue: North West Stadium, Welkom
Date: Friday, 17 October
Time: 13h00
Referee: Archie Sehlako
Assistant referees: Tahla Ntshakaza, Jaco Kotze
Absa Currie Cup First Division Final – Down Touch Griffons vs Valke
Venue: North West Stadium, Welkom
Referee: Ben Crouse
Assistant referees: Lourens van der Merwe, Archie Sehlako
TMO: JJ Wagner