Sharks vs Cheetahs to go ahead after recent Covid-19 disruption

Sharks players warming up during the 2021 British and Irish Lions Tour rugby match between the Sharks and BI Lions at Loftus Stadium, Pretoria on 10 July 2021 ©Muzi Ntombela/BackpagePix

Sharks players warming up during the 2021 British and Irish Lions Tour rugby match between the Sharks and BI Lions at Loftus Stadium, Pretoria on 10 July 2021 ©Muzi Ntombela/BackpagePix

Published Aug 13, 2021

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The good news for the Currie Cup and for Sharks fans in particular is that it looks like the Durban team’s match against the Cheetahs on Sunday in Durban is going ahead.

The Sharks said in a short statement on Friday that they would announce a team today (Saturday) for the fixture at Jonsson Kings Park.

The Sharks’ scheduled match against the Pumas in Nelspruit on Wednesday had to be called off after the Sharks informed SA Rugby that they had suffered an outbreak of Covid in their ranks.

The Sharks said that they could not put a team on the field without compromising player safety.

The inference was that the Sharks’ front-rankers were the hardest hit by the outbreak.

The Sharks have been in a tussle with the Bulls and Griquas for the top spot on the Currie Cup table and it would have hurt them to surrender the four match points to the Pumas, in accordance with the competition rules, which hold that the team that has the Covid cases and can’t play, must forfeit the points.

On Sunday, both teams will be desperate to win —victory for the KwaZulu-Natalians will mean they remain in the race to finish in the top two on the log, and thus host a semi-final, while the Free Staters need the result to keep alive their playoff hopes and move away from the bottom of the log.

IOL Sport

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