Old foes and new fires: Currie Cup 2025 opens with a rivalry-rich menu

YOU KNOW the familiar old saying, “things can only get better”? Well, I don’t see how that quaint idiom is going to stand its ground in this upcoming season's Currie Cup … and here’s why I say that:

You see, the match-ups in the opening round of the 2025 Currie Cup Premier League are going to take a lot to beat.

On day one of the competition, the first game is already a humdinger. It’s based on an intense rivalry, tons of respect, a quest for revenge, as well as oodles of pride.

Yes, let me not keep you guessing – the competition kicks off with a rematch of this year’s SA Cup Final. The Airlink Pumas will once again host the Suzuki Griquas in Nelspruit on Friday, July 25. 

Remember – though who could forget – the Pumas outmuscled the Griquas in that final, and there’s some bruised pride and some new plans that are sure to make the opening game one of the hottest and most tightly contested of this year’s competition.

And if you’re thinking that you can relax after that clash, think again.

The very next day, Saturday, July 26, another final rematch is on the cards when the Lions host the defending champion Sharks at Ellis Park – the team who dramatically clinched the title last season.

Rugby fans won’t have forgotten how Jordan Hendrikse broke the hearts of his former Lions teammates and home supporters when he fired a last-minute, long-range penalty soaring through the posts to hand the Sharks XV a dramatic 16-14 victory at a cold and wet Emirates Airline Park in Johannesburg in September last year.

There’s bound to be some niggle in this rematch, don’t you think?

Meanwhile … no, don’t take it easy just yet … because later in the day, down in the Cape, eternal arch-rivals Western Province will host the Bulls, who are still processing their recent URC final loss to Leinster and will be out to make a statement.

There … don’t you think that’s a rugby feast, a banquet worth feasting on, just awaiting rugby fans? Of course it is. But here’s the thing – there’s still a decadent dessert on the menu!

To round off a massive opening weekend, on Sunday, July 27, the Boland Cavaliers will announce their return to the Currie Cup, after last competing back in 2016.

The Bolanders will face a team they’ve built a bit of a rivalry with of late, when they welcome the Cheetahs to their house of pain – the Boland Stadium.

The Cavaliers, according to Afrikaans publication Rapport, have former Stormers and Springbok scrumhalf Louis Schreuder in their sights for this season.

The 35-year-old, who earned his solitary Test cap for the Springboks against Wales in Cardiff in 2017, will leave Bath at the end of the European season and could bring a wealth of experience and talent to the Cape.

Meanwhile, the rumour mill has it that Blitzboks David Brits and Donovan Don could also turn out for the Cavaliers in the Currie Cup – but this depends on SA Rugby’s stamp of approval.

I don’t know about you, but for me, just looking at the menu for the opening weekend, I feel hoarse already.

Having said that, here’s the full Currie Cup schedule:

Round One

Friday, July 25 (7 pm): Pumas vs Griquas

Saturday, July 26 (3 pm): Lions vs Sharks, (5.10 pm): Western Province vs Bulls

Sunday, July 27 (3 pm): Boland Cavaliers vs Cheetahs

Round Two

Friday, August 1 (7 pm): Cheetahs vs Pumas

Saturday, August 2 (3 pm): Lions vs Western Province, (5.10 pm): Bulls vs Sharks

Sunday, August 3 (3 pm): Griquas vs Boland Cavaliers

Round Three

Friday, August 8 (3 pm): Griquas vs Western Province

Saturday, August 9 (3 pm): Bulls vs Pumas, (5.10 pm): Sharks vs Cheetahs

Sunday, August 10 (3 pm): Boland Cavaliers vs Lions

Round Four

Friday, August 15 (3 pm): Griquas vs Sharks, (7.10 pm): Pumas vs Lions

Saturday, August 16 (2 pm): Cheetahs vs Western Province

Sunday, August 17 (3 pm): Boland Cavaliers vs Bulls

Round Five

Friday, August 22 (5 pm): Pumas vs Boland Cavaliers, (7.10 pm): Sharks vs Western Province

Saturday, August 23 (2 pm): Cheetahs vs Lions

Sunday, August 24 (3 pm): Bulls vs Griquas

Round Six

Friday, August 29 (5 pm): Cheetahs vs Griquas

Saturday, August 30 (3 pm): Lions vs Bulls, (5.10 pm): Sharks vs Boland Cavaliers, (7.20 pm): Western Province vs Pumas

Round Seven

Friday, September 5 (7 pm): Sharks vs Pumas

Saturday, September 6 (2.45 pm): Western Province vs Boland Cavaliers, (5 pm): Lions vs Griquas, (7.05 pm): Bulls vs Cheetahs