The last time the Fidelity ADT Lions and Hollywoodbets Sharks met in the Currie Cup final was in 2011 and the men from Johannesburg claimed a comfortable 42-16 victory at home.
As the two sides prepare to have a go at it again in the 2024 edition, the Lions are clear favourites to repeat what they did 13 years ago, sending the Sharks back to the coastal region with nothing but broken hearts on Saturday.
But former Springbok star Odwa Ndungane sees an opportunity for the Sharks to turn the tables and take the coveted trophy to Durban after the hooter at the Emirates Airline Park at 16:00.
“If you look at the two teams, there’s quality on both sides and I think there are two things that are going to be the big decider in the final. (The first one) is the bench,” Ndungane said.
“I think for the Sharks, if you look at who they have selected in the last couple of games they’ve got the upper hand in terms of quality on the bench.
“We’ve seen in most games it’s what decides the game,” he said.
“The second thing is a team that can hold their nerve and be more disciplined will come out victorious.
“What will help the Sharks is experience, having played in a big final recently which was the Challenge Cup (which they won) a couple of months ago.
“That will be a plus for them, so I see the Sharks possibly winning this one by 10 or eight points.”
Ndungane, however, said it’s not going to be a walk in the park for the men from the Zulu Kingdom as the Lions can be quite stubborn at home.
“They are not an easy team to beat in Johannesburg, playing in front of their fans and they’ve had a good run in the last couple of games,” Ndungane said.
“They would want to use that momentum going into the final.”
2015 – what a year to remember! 🙌🔥
— Lions (@LionsRugbyCo) September 20, 2024
Tag the players you recognise in the comments below and let’s relive the magic together! 👇
🆚 @SharksRugby
🗓: Sat, 21 Sept
⏰: 16H00
🎟: https://t.co/yvdp0mIkIh
🏟 : Emirates Airline Park
🏆: @TheCurrieCup#CarlingCurrieCup
#LionsPride🦁 pic.twitter.com/FM0nZL7i76
Teams
Lions – 15 Quan Horn, 14 Rabz Maxwane, 13 Rynhardt Jonker, 12 Marius Louw, 11 Tapiwa Mafura, 10 Sanele Nohamba, 9 Nico Steyn, 8 Jarod Cairns, 7 Ruan Venter, 6 Renzo du Plessis, 5 Darrien Landsberg, 4 Ruben Schoeman, 3 Asenathi Ntlabakanye, 2 Jaco Visagie (c), 1 Morgan Naude.
Replacements: 16 Morne Brandon, 17 Juan Schoeman, 18 Conrad van Vuuren, 19 Siba Qoma, 20 Raynard Roets, 21 JC Pretorius, 22 Kade Wolhuter, 23 Kelly Mpeku.
Sharks – 15 Jordan Hendrikse, 14 Eduan Keyter, 13 Jurenzo Julius, 12 Andre Esterhuizen, 11 Ethan Hooker, 10 Siya Masuku, 9 Bradley Davids, 8 Emmanuel Tshituka, 7 Vincent Tshituka, 6 James Venter, 5 Emile van Heerden, 4 Corne’ Rahl, 3 Hanro Jacobs, 2 Fez Mbatha, 1 Ntuthuko Mchunu.
Replacements: 16 Dylan Richardson, 17 Trevor Nyakane, 18 Mawande Mdande, 19 Jason Jenkins, 20 Gerbrandt Grobler, 21 Tinotenda Mavesere, 22 Tian Meyer, 23 Lionel Cronje.
