This match is awash with tension from both sides. Griquas are looking at securing third place on the competition table, but in order to achieve this they must take care of Pumas on Friday.
THE WINDHOEK Draught Griquas are banking on key players in the team to pull them through against the Airlink Pumas on Friday when they battle it out in their last round-robin fixture of the Carling Currie Cup being played at Mbombela stadium at 7pm.
This match is awash with tension from both sides. Griquas are looking at securing third place on the competition table, but in order to achieve this they must take care of Pumas on Friday.
The Pumas for their part will be straining themselves beyond the normal to make a first time appearance in the semi-final stages of the domestic competition. So a win against Griquas ranks very high on their priority list for this match.
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The locals who follow the ‘Kwaste’ will for their part bank on their team’s historic head-to-head comparison where they are tops on the statistics.
The Griquas head coach Pieter Bergh said before their departure for Mbombela: “It is a massive game for both teams and we really want to win to finish third on the log.
“Pumas versus Griquas are always closely contested matches and we know that the Pumas will want to make sure they get their first ever semi-final. It will be a massive challenge in Nelspruit but we are looking forward to building on our performances of the last couple of weeks.”
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Speaking of the team set-up for the match, the coach said, “Zander du Plessis will miss this game with concussion, but luckily we have George Whitehead coming in who played really well against Western Province last week.
👇💥#windhoekdraughtgriquas 🍻#GriquasComeBack 🔵 https://t.co/XKEb8VGcR9
— Griquas Rugby (@GriquasRugby) June 9, 2022
“George (Whitehead) and Stefan Ungerer played a big part in getting Griquas to the play-offs last season and hopefully their experience will be valuable for us on Friday,” the coach added.
Understandably, with so much at stake, the coaches are playing their cards close to the chest this time around.
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To their credit Griquas are no strangers to high stakes games such as this. They have won the Currie Cup title three times and the Vodacom Cup a joint-record five times.
Recent performances by the Kimberely team has also been impressive with them scoring good wins over the Cheetahs and more recently, Western province in Stellenbosch.
Team Announcement
The following players were not selected due to Injury:
Mzwanele Zito
Andrew Beerwinkel
Ruan Steenkamp
Prince Nkabinde
Jan-Louis La Grange
Justin Forwood
Carl Els
Zander du Plessis pic.twitter.com/C67dATBi0Y— Griquas Rugby (@GriquasRugby) June 9, 2022
