Sharks and Stormers kickstart URC return

The first local derby of the United Rugby Championship (URC) season is on the menu when the competition returns this weekend, while the two Gauteng sides are in for tough matches in Ireland.

After a month-long break for the November international window, the URC is back, with a coastal derby between the Sharks and Stormers in Durban kicking off proceedings on Saturday afternoon.

Later on Saturday, the Bulls (third on the log) and the Lions (fourth) will be looking to build on their strong starts to the competition when they face Connacht and Munster in Ireland.

In Durban, the hosts will be trying to put to bed an unwanted record against their visitors from the Western Cape. The sides also will be keen to move up the log, as they are outside the top eight after less-than-perfect starts to the season.

Though the margins in the past three games were close, the Stormers have never lost against the Sharks, winning five consecutively after their first URC derby in January 2022 ended in a draw.

The Sharks will take some momentum into the game, as their only loss in their past four matches was against Benetton in Treviso in the fourth round, while they have also won both their home games in Durban this season.

But they are up against a team that have almost perfected winning their SA derbies — the Stormers have lost just once in local URC games since December 2021, which was by 22-40 to the Bulls in Pretoria in March.

The team from Pretoria, bolstered by the inclusion of a host of Springboks from the November internationals, have a tricky outing on Saturday against Connacht in Galway. The Irish province won their most recent match at Dexcom Stadium by a comfortable 31-7 over the Dragons, but they have not managed successive wins at home since March.

SA teams have generally struggled in Galway, where Connacht’s home record against visitors from SA is 10 wins from 12 matches.

But the Bulls have started the season well and have lost only once so far in this campaign, by a point to the Scarlets in the fifth round, and they will be keen to break their duck in Galway.

About 100km to the south, the Lions have a tough match against Munster in Limerick, where the Irish giants will be looking to avoid a fourth successive defeat for the first time since the 2003/04 season.

Munster have never lost a home game to an SA opponent in the URC, but the Gauteng team has been on a roll this season, having lost only once so far, against Leinster in Dublin in their last clash before the international break.

SA Rugby