Stormers to host Lions in URC derby
GEARING UP: SA Franchises in local derby
South Africa’s rugby franchises will face each other this weekend, with two United Rugby Championship derbies originally scheduled for February 2022 being brought forward.
In the wake of the round six and seven matches that were postponed last week due to the emergence of a new variant of Covid-19, it was decided to move two local derbies forward.
As a result, the Sharks will now host the Bulls in Durban on Friday at 7pm, while the Stormers, who would have hosted Italy’s Zebre last weekend, will face the Lions in Cape Town on Saturday at 5pm.
South African Rugby CEO Jurie Roux says: “Our four teams have been hard at work and in conjunction with the tournament organisers, we’ve decided to bring forward two of the derbies originally scheduled for early in the new year.
“Apart from providing our teams with much-needed game time, we are also trying to open up space in the calendar for a possible rescheduling of the matches that had been postponed this weekend.”