Golden Lions and Blue Bulls still unbeaten in the Currie Cup

The defending Carling Currie Cup Premier Division champions, the Toyota Cheetahs, will be keen to bounce back to winning ways in their Free State derby, while the Hollywoodbets Sharks XV will have to overcome the unbeaten Fidelity ADT Lions if they are to break their season duck in the fourth round this weekend.

Meanwhile, the First Division reaches its final this weekend, with Eastern Province travelling to Wellington where they will aim to cause an upset and take the title from last year’s champions, the Sanlam Boland Kavaliers.

The round kicks off in Welkom at 15h00 on Friday afternoon, when the Toyota Cheetahs will want to bounce back from their first defeat of the season last weekend in Pretoria, in their Free State derby with neighbours NovaVit Griffons at the Down Touch Investments Stadium.

Two Premier Division matches take place on Saturday, with high flying Fidelity ADT Lions hosting the Hollywoodbets Sharks XV from 15h00 in Johannesburg, before the action moves to Pretoria for a North-South derby between the Vodacom Bulls and DHL Western Province, at 17h15.

To complete the fourth round action, the Airlink Pumas and Suzuki Griquas will battle it out at 14h00 on Sunday in Nelspruit.

With both Free State teams suffering defeats last weekend – the Toyota Cheetahs away to the Vodacom Bulls and the NovaVit Griffons at home to DHL WP – both teams will be keen to grab victory when they clash in Welkom.

The Northern Free Staters are yet to open their account this season, and they will be desperate for an upset against their southern neighbours.

The action then moves to Johannesburg, where the Fidelity ADT Lions will be looking to build on their good early-season form against the struggling Hollywoodbets Sharks XV.

The hosts can rightly be regarded as favourites, but even though JP Pietersen's visiting team have lost all three league games to date, they do have a quality side that will be desperate for a winning performance.

In Pretoria, the current form of the two teams will not matter, as the traditional North-South derby between arch-rivals, the Vodacom Bulls and DHL Western Province, always deliver fireworks.

The hosts are riding high with three wins on the trot, while the Cape outfit bagged their first win last week in Welkom. The Vodacom Bulls have a settled-looking side, while DHL WP find themselves pretty much in a building phase, but it will nonetheless be a big clash with more than bragging rights at stake.

On Sunday, the action concludes with an exciting clash in Nelspruit between the Airlink Pumas and Suzuki Griquas, which kicks off at 14h00.

The Lowvelders recorded a brilliant victory last week in Durban when they raced to a 24-0 lead before going on to clinch a dramatic 31-24 away win. The Northern Cape team have made a slow and you can bet they will be up for this tussle in Nelspruit.

All the weekend action – including the First Division Final – will be broadcast live on SuperSport.

Match information:

NovaVit Griffons vs Toyota Cheetahs

Date: Friday, 26 July

Venue: Down Touch Investments Stadium, Welkom

Time: 15h00

Referee: Sean Muller

TV: SS Rugby

Fidelity ADT Lions vs Hollywoodbets Sharks XV

Date: Saturday, 27 July

Venue: Emirates Airline Park, Johannesburg

Time: 15h00

Referee: Griffin Colby

TV: SS Rugby

Vodacom Bulls vs DHL Western Province

Date: Saturday, 27 July

Venue: Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria

Time: 17h15

Referee: Aimee Barrett-Theron

TV: SS Rugby

Airlink Pumas vs Suzuki Griquas

Date: Sunday, 28 July

Venue: Mbombela Stadium, Nelspruit

Time: 14h00

Referee: Christopher Allison

TV: SS Rugby