Currie Cup picks - Three rounds to go

The Currie Cup is in an intriguing place right now and a lot of the teams have plenty to play for in the last three rounds.

Western Province vs Griquas
First up is the critical WP vs. Griquas fixture which will have a huge bearing on how the semi-finals shape up.

Province are looking for a win in front of their home crowd to secure a Newlands semi-final, while Griquas need three points today to pretty much lock up a playoff place and bump out the Cheetahs.

I can't see Province losing at home and looking at the odds on first points scored, nothing really jumps out at me. R2.50 on first points scored via a Griquas penalty looks the most attractive considering Naas Oliviers kicking boot.

Lions vs. Boland
A bit of a nothing game with the Lions playing for pride and Boland just going through the motions.

The Lions are unlikely to lose today but just to be facetious to the Lions supporters I put R5 down on Boland to win at 33/1 but don't really expect anything to come out of it.

Bulls vs. Cheetahs
This is going to be a hugely physical and entertaining clash if both teams come to the party today.

What the Cheetahs lack on defence, they more than make up for in their attacking abilities and I've actually tipped them as an upset for today. I've also added put quite a bit down on the first points coming via a Cheetahs try.

Not totally convinced that the Cheetahs will have the ultimate fire-power to overcome the Bulls in Pretoria but they've certainly got the ability to make a game of it and they're always good value for an upset.

Currie Cup predictions

Another round of the Currie Cup is here and there are some very interesting fixtures up this weekend. Last night Western Province went top of the log with an average victory over the Leopards and that has put the pressure on the other five sides competing for three more places in the semis.

Griquas vs. Lions
Geez what a fixture this could turn out to be!

The Lions are showing signs that they may be discovering some form and confidence but taking on the Griquas in Kimberly could be like walking in to a street-fight in Hillbrow on New Years Eve.

Points here for Griquas and they could be in for the play-offs, if the Lions drop points here then they are probably out of the running for the top 4.

First points are probably going to come from the boot and I am backing the Griquas to score first.

Prediction: Win for the Griquas.

Boland vs. Bulls
A tough fixture but I suspect the Bulls will come away as winners here.

A small bet on the Bulls scoring first courtesy of a try.

Sharks vs. Cheetahs
If this fixture was being played in Bloem I would have money down on the Cheetahs to upset here. The Free State side hasn't played the worst rugby this season, even if it has been a little inconsistent.

The Sharks welcome back Boks Ryan Kankowski, Jannie du Plessis and Odwa Ndungane on the bench so they'll have depth and their fanatical supporters behind them but don't expect one-way traffic.

Prediction: First points scored to come via a try and the Sharks to come away as winners.C

New Zealand vs. Australia

The final game of the Vodacom Tri-Nations kicks off in about half an hour and in reality it is a bit of a non-event considering the Springboks wrapped up the tournament last week.

However for the Australian and All Black coaches there is plenty on the line. Both have been under some serious fire for the way their sides have performed.

While I expect the All Blacks to come out on top I'd expect both sides to run the ball - they've got very little to lose and I've got an each way bet on the first points being scored via a try.

In terms of my try-scorers I don't think you can look beyond Matt Giteau (18/1) and Dan Carter (16/1). Giteau has been in good try-scoring form and Carter looks like he is coming back to his best - with a running game on the cards - I'd expect these two to be prominent.

Currie Cup predictions

The Currie Cup is getting really interesting and there are some big fixtures on the cards today.

Cheetahs vs Western Province
I am torn here. I am an out and out Province fan but I have a concern that this Cheetahs side could be a real handful in their own backyard.

I haven't put any money down on a winner but I have gone each way on the sides scoring tries as the first points on the board.

Bulls vs Sharks
Another tough fixture to call with both sides being evenly matched. Travelling to Loftus though is a tough ask and I reckon the Bulls will prevail here.

Gone with the Bulls to score first via a try.

Tri-Nations predictions

The Tri-Nations decider kicks off in a few hours time and it looks likely to be a titanic clash. The All Blacks are favourites to win after the Aussies found a couple of chinks in the Bok armoury last week.

Judging from the media war that has accompanied the two teams this week one can imagine there is no love lost between these teams.

A couple of bets here:

Gone with the Boks to win

First points scored - gone each way on tries and also put a few bucks down on a drop goal. Traditionally the Boks have reverted to the old fashioned drop kick when they want to put a side on the back foot and I wouldn't be surprised to see them try it here.

First try scorer again was split four ways on Fourie Du Preez, Pierre Spies, Joe Rockockoko and Richie Mccaw.

C'mon the Boks!

Pleasing to see

I'll be honest I am not a Lions rugby fan by the stretch of anyones imagination, but it is an absolute pleasure to see them starting to string together some competitive performances again in the Currie Cup.

South African rugby needs a strong Lions side - they dominate in the money stakes and they have the ability to produce world-class players. To see them lurching from season to season with weak and inconsistent performances is not good and its great to see some of the new faces coming through.

While it is great that Griquas have gotten off to such a flyer and are comfortable at the top of the Currie Cup log it means that both the Lions and the Cheetahs are facing the prospect of missing the knock-out rounds of the competition which will hurt them financially and damage their ability to retain good players.

I see Earl Rose had another shocker in his comeback game for the Lions - really think it is time for him to go and take up another sport methinks....

Transformation again

I was reading on the Keo.co.za website that Peter DeVilliers - the Springbok rugby coach - has been labelled a traitor by a group called the Transformation and Anti-Racism Rugby Committee (TARC).

They feel that by only selecting Habana, Pietersen and The Beast in his run-on lineup, Div has turned his back on the whole transformation thing.

Veiled threats and press statements from TARC are pointless - at this point they need to come out and say that they would rather we include weaker players rather than be a winning professional unit.

Apart from Chilliboy there are no real international calibre players of colour that spring to mind in the tight forward stakes. We are absolutely spoilt for choice in the loose forward space although I actually think that the Griquas captain and number 8 could be the type of player to watch in the near future.

At scrumhalf we have Ricky Januarie - who can't get game time and Heini Adams - but neither of them is in the same ball park as Fourie Du Preez at the moment.

Flyhalf? Nope there ain't too many players who stand out here whether they are black, white, pink or purple.

Centres... hhmmm Adrian Jacobs who is in the match day squad and gets a fair amount of game time.

Wings - In terms of specialist wingers the choices are Habana, Pietersen, Ndungane, Nokwe - they are all players of colour and there on merit.

Fullback - Personally I think Zane Kirchner has a lot to offer South Africa in the fullback role but with Frans Steyn having to be included somewhere and Ruan Pienaar also having to make up the backline numbers at the moment its a juggling act that there is no immediate solution to.

It is all good and well for TARC to talk about lack of transformation but with due respect where would they like these players to play? And why are they blaming the national coach for not buying into transformation.

Have a look at the Currie Cup sides. Almost all of the provinces meet or beat unofficial quotas and the players are there on merit. It is unfortunate that these are the best players in the world at the moment and there are only 15 players allowed on the field at any given stage... but unfortunately that is the rules of rugby and maybe TARC need to take it up with the IRB if they don't like it?

Currie Cup predictions

The Currie Cup is starting to look very interesting and there are a couple of big games up for this weekend.

Cheetahs vs Lions
The Cheetahs play host to a Lions side that is just starting to find its feet. The Lions will have been boosted by their performance last weekend and I've put money down that they will overcome the Cheetahs - even if they are playing in Bloem.

I suspect it could be quite a tightly fought game but if the Lions strike early then they could have the Cheetahs on the back foot. Also backed the Lions to score the first points via a try.

Western Province vs Bulls
The big game of the weekend sees Western Province hosting the Bulls in a critical game for both sides. I think home ground advantage is going to hold the key to this fixture and I'm expecting Province to sneak home - but it is going to be tight.

With Peter Grant having moved to second choice kicker for Province, both teams have relatively light-weight first choice goalkickers so I expect both sides to be looking to run the ball and seek out bonus points which could become increasingly important as the group stage starts to wrap up.

I have gone each way on a try being the first points scored by either side - WP (3/1) and Bulls (5/1)

Tri-Nations betting

Australia and South Africa clash today with the Springboks needing just two points to wrap up the Tri-Nations.

Again I don't see how anybody can look beyond the Springboks today - even if they do have a couple of walking wounded.

I'm expecting both sides to play a running game. The Boks want the points and the Aussies have nothing to lose so I'm banking on the first points to come from a try. I've gone each way on the sides at 3/1 for the Boks and 5/1 for the Aussies.

First try-scorer is a tricky one and I have tried to cover my bases taking Spies (22/1) and Du Preez (20/1) again this week and then Matt Giteau (16/1) and James O'Connor (14/1).

Odds supplied courtesy of World Sports Betting.