Injury-hit Griquas out to end Cheetahs’ unbeaten start to Currie Cup

The men from Kimberley are always dangerous on their home turf. Griquas will be aiming to continue where they left off last weekend when they host the Cheetahs in a round three Currie Cup match in Kimberley on Friday evening (7pm). But, the men from the Northern Cape have something of a minor injury crisis which will give the travellers from Bloemfontein hope of pulling off a third straight win in the competition. After losing their opening match of this season’s competition, to the Stormers in Cape Town (25-19), the defending champions, Griquas, bounced back last week with a good 56-26 win against the Bulls in Kimberley. Pieter Bergh and his charges will be going all out to continue that good form, but they will have to make do without the likes of fullback Cameron Hufke, who is possibly out for the season with a knee injury, and Dylan Maart, who is out with a shoulder injury, while Keegan Blankenberg and Gustave Erlank also have long-term injuries. Eddie Davids, Malembe Mpofu, Dylan Smith and Janco Uys are also unavailable this week. In all, nine frontline players are sidelined. Despite the situation Griquas find themselves in, they remain a tough team to get the better of at home. In recent head-to-heads between the sides, Griquas have won three of the last five encounters – including a decisive 25-5 semi-final win last year – making Kimberley a formidable place to visit for the Free Staters. The Cheetahs meanwhile are on something of a roll, having won against the Lions (29-27) and Sharks (43-21) so far for a full house of 10 log points. They sit top of the points table. Frans Steyn’s team have been in decent form, running in several tries in those victories, many of them created or scored by new scrumhalf recruit, the experienced Faf de Klerk. The two-time World Cup winner will again be a key figure in this match, though he is playing off the bench on Friday and will be expected to keep his team on the front foot later on, and Griquas will do well to keep him in check. Unfortunately for the Cheetahs, they, too, have suffered a big injury blow, with centre Munier Hartzenberg ruled out for a long time with a knee injury. A third straight win would solidify the Cheetahs’ place at the top of the standings, while Griquas, who’re in fourth place, will not want to lose again, which would see them slip out of the playoff places for the time being.