2015 was a difficult year for many of the usual front-runners in the Varsity Cup tournament. However, like all competitions, it is now down to just four teams battling it out for Varsity Cup victory.
Three-time champions Maties had a difficult start to their season with two draws and a loss to make up their first three results and despite having finished very strong and equalling the same number of points as NWU-Pukke, they were unable to leapfrog Pukke due to previously earned bonus points.
The first semi-final game will be between UP-Tuks and NWU-Pukke who finished in first and fourth place respectively. Tuks have only lost one game their entire tournament and as luck would have it, it was against Pukke in the fourth round. Unfortunately, while Tuks have grown in confidence since this loss, Pukke have endured a roller coaster ride and have not convincingly shown they are able to compete on the level they would need to in order to take the title.
While Tuks are no strangers to the final, Pukke shouldn’t count themselves out just yet. The UCT Ikeys proved this in 2014, it isn’t over until the final whistle blows. Tuks have been plagued with injuries throughout their season and will be without the services of flank Jannes Kirsten and replacement loose forward Pieter Janse van Vuuren. Tuks consultant, Nollis Marais, believes the game will be won or lost amongst the forwards.
In the second semi-final, UCT-Ikey Tigers will be traveling to Bloemfontein to meet UFS-Shimlas in what will be their first semi-final at their home ground. Shimlas can thank their ability to play as a solid unit for their success so far and will go into their clash against the Cape Town team with a psychological edge thanks to a 44-24 win in the sixth round.
While the team I was backing will not be competing for yet another win, this season, we have a 50% chance of having a first-time champion. Both Ikeys and Tuks are strong competitors and can easily take the overall victory, while Pukke and Shimlas are both confident in their abilities so far and have shown they are more than capable are beating the top dogs, having both done it once already in the earlier rounds. Both teams also hold the converted “under-dog” label, a label that seems to bring an immense amount of luck to the team in question.
Ikeys will look to win back-to-back tournaments and hopefully silence those who firmly believe they are constantly playing second fiddle to their Cape Town rivals while the four remaining teams who have since bowed out are left to look at their competition and figure out where it all went wrong.
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