WP to mak ehistory in Vodacom Cup

Ex Supersport

DHL Western Province or the Ford Pumas will be making history on Saturday when one of them qualifies for the Vodacom Cup final in a weeks’ time.

Neither of these sides has ever made it past the semifinal stage of the competition. They are playing each other in Cape Town on Saturday afternoon to determine which team will progress to the final, to be held on the weekend of 18/19 May at the venue of the top team from the North Section.

The other semifinal is on Friday afternoon in Kimberley between the two teams that have dominated the Vodacom Cup playoffs since its inception in 1998 – GWK Griquas and the Vodacom Blue Bulls. Between them, they have won the title seven times and been runners up eight times.

If GWK Griquas win their semifinal, they will also host the final. If the Vodacom Blue Bulls and the Ford Pumas win, the final will be in Mpumalanga, and if it’s the Blue Bulls against Western Province, the final will be in Pretoria.

It’s not the ideal scenario for DHL Western Province, as they are the only team this season that have not lost a game.

Western Province followed their seven from seven in the league phase of the Vodacom Cup with a comprehensive home win against the MTN Golden Lions in the quarterfinal in Cape Town last weekend (58-34) and can be regarded as favourites of the Ford Pumas, who finished second in the North Section and eliminated the EP Kings by 30-19 last Friday.

One of the few survivors of DHL WP’s Vodacom Cup semifinal defeat in 2008 is midfielder PJ Vermeulen, who is now plying his trade for GWK Griquas.

For GWK Griquas and the Vodacom Blue Bulls, the semifinal is a replay of their first round clash in early March, won comfortably by the team from the Northern Cape (36-17) in Pretoria. The home team was totally outplayed on that day and conceded six tries to two.

However, the Peacock Blues will not have forgotten last year’s semifinal, when the Vodacom Blue Bulls, who snuck into the playoffs, caused somewhat of an upset in Kimberley (47-34) to advance to their fifth successive Vodacom Cup final.

Marnitz Boshoff, who kicked six penalties, three conversions and a drop goal on that day to help steer the Blue Bulls to a fine victory, has since left Pretoria and joined GWK Griquas, where he has been sharing the flyhalf duties with Francois Brummer, another former Bull.

When it comes to semifinals and finals, these two teams are the most successful in Vodacom Cup history.

The Vodacom Blue Bulls have only lost one out of their 10 appearances in the semifinals, while GWK Griquas have won six from eight.

What happened to the queens!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wht seems to be the reason that a team that goes through the Log stags of the competition unbeaten cannot have a home final?

If they then proceed to the final they will have been unbeaten and they still don't get a home final.

So the best team in the comp then needs to go and play a final away from home.

Odd rules i should say.

Maybe they work on bonus points and we didnt get enough?  This log from Supersport seems out of date..  No sure what is potting here. Griguas is out of alignment

Strange indeed.

I see you complain about the Kings.

Here they only play as EP, so the SWD and border guys are not in the squad. However I don't think they did too badly.

They beat the Free State, Pumas, Bulls, Lions and last years champs the Pampas on log points. They only lost 2 games. Really they did not do badly at all. 5 out of 7  Same result as the Sharks, sharks have 2 bonus points extra.

Well Ek they still ended below the Griquas and Pumas as well as the WP and Bulle B teams.

They are still markedly inferior to the Lions and Cheetahs in most peoples view.

If queens are confident that this is not so let them play against the side facing demotion so they can earn the right to beincluded. Would take a lot of the sting out of things. Merit is the key word here.

Yes I understand your argument, teams where just as angree at the Banan Boys' inclusion in the CC in the 80's when Griquas lost out, most people seem to have forgotten that one.

 This will be a cool comp.

Please explain Lunatic? How will this be a cool comp. It is a comp, the vodacom Cup, and we find some of the rules baffling.

Ek the argument re the Kings potential cant be dismissed out of hand. However if they have potential but do not use it that makes matters worse. EP will be the cornerstone of the  Kings. Yet theiradmin has been very weak andhey still ar eabout 5 or so on the Vodacom log.

Come on! Surely they could win the Vodacom Cup. Gain entry to the Currie Cup and if they do well there then certainly they become an option.

I remember Natal struggling but didn't they WIN promotion to the Currie Cup. Then came the professional era and they had the cash to buy a team and they were on their way.

EK, Why I dont like this is also because in SA today its all about who you know, cadre deployment, people without the knowledge experience or ability given jobs they cannot handle and then fouling up to the detriment of many including  especiall ythe poor.

We have to get back to merit and try to build an equal opportunity society at the same time . If we abandon merit that will take much longer and may actually not be achievable due to waste o fresources and inefficiency etc. Its a huge problem and a change of mindset is needed.

Beeno  No need for the long argument, As i said, I understand totally, It is about the way people feel. However i need to point out that this will not be the first time that something like this happens, and surely not the last.

No use for us to scream and shout, it is going to happen, and it will be unfair to someone. now the banana boys got their day in the sun and I find it most ironic that even the sharks supporters i know are against this move, and have totally forgotten how they got promotion to the Currie Cup.

It is a useless argument, to me everyone standing on the side are like little kiddies shouting at how uinfair life is. Well my answer is yes it's unfair, but bite it and find a solution. the tantrums from everyone will not get us anywhere.

This is exactly the reason I have started looking at the EP side in a different light, and tried to see the positives in what they are trying to do.

So to mention one. I have not seen a better scrum in any side in the S15. In the warmup games they walked with all the sides.

So yes i have stopped shouting about it, as I don't see the point anymore, and i have changed my mindset.

 @EK - I was on the mobile and could not type long messages.  It is a cool comp in the sense that it allows for some new talent to come through the ranks.  It is a pity that the rules are seemingly flawed.  I do not think the teams worry too much about not playing at home, but the unions should be afforded the opportunity to make some money out of the spectacle.

Let's speculate:  It should not be to difficult for WP to beat teh pumas - so that one is a given.  The Blue Bulls have had their ranks a bit depleted with some of their stars playing in the S15 so the Griquas and BB game will be a bit more difficult to pick a winner.  The BB showed some tenacity but will they have the player-expertise to win?

It is however my opinion that the WP will be able to beat either of the two in a final.  so for all practical purposes the WP have a more than 75% chance of taking the Vodacom Cup.

I love the way you think lunatic, and trust me I would have those odds any day. However as all of us migh have learn't along the way, come play off time, anything can happen. So to make it more favourable It would be nice to be able to play for home ground advantage.