PICK OF THE SPORT: The South African United Rugby Championship teams did well last week – but they may not have it all their way this weekend, predicts Dylan Bettencourt.
The South African Vodacom United Rugby Championship teams scored a perfect four out of four victories last weekend. We could see a repeat of these results this weekend, but the teams are all playing away, and it might be a tough grind for some of them.
The two high-flying teams, the Bulls and the Lions should score runaway victories, but the other two teams will have to bring something very special to the table.
Benetton have not won a match this year and have suffered 30+ points losses in their last two games, but that doesn’t mean the Sharks will beat them easily. The men from Durban had a very unconvincing win in the 84th minute of their match against the Dragons.
Edinburgh must be in pain after getting crushed by the Lions last week, and, playing at home, they could very well beat the Stormers. Either way, it’s going to be close.
The Ospreys have been up and down so far, and it looks as if the Bulls will simply outmuscle them and win by two scores or more.
Can the Lions maintain their incredible form? There is nothing to say they won’t. Any way you look at it, the Lions look set to score a big win against the Dragons.
Benetton v Sharks in Treviso, 4pm, Saturday.
Edinburgh v Stormers in Edinburgh, 6.15pm, Saturday.
Ospreys v the Bulls in Swansea, 8.35pm Saturday.
Dragons v Lions in Newport, 3.30pm, Sunday.
All matches are live on DStv channels 201 and 211.
➤ With football being on an international break, club football has been put on hold, with the Uefa Nations League taking centre stage until next weekend.
With some games already having taken place on Thursday, Friday’s action will see Germany travel to Bosnia and Herzegovina, with kickoff set for 8.45pm.
Portugal will be in action on Saturday night when they face Poland at 8.45pm. Spain will host Denmark at 9.45pm, and Serbia will face Switzerland at the same time.
England will round off the weekend with a trip to Finland at 6pm on Sunday, hoping to overcome their shock 2-1 defeat to Greece on Thursday night.
The international action continues on Monday and Tuesday before players return to their respective clubs to prepare for the weekend’s league games.
All the action will be live on DStv channel 203.
➤ The Proteas women’s team plays its last group stage game on Saturday against Bangladesh. The team hopes to qualify for the semi-finals next week.
South Africa are currently second in Group B, level on points with the West Indies and England.
The Proteas will be looking for a big win to ensure their place in the final four of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup.
The action kicks off on Saturday on DStv channel 212.
Pictured above: Blue Bulls.
Source: Blue Bulls/X
