The Pumas, who will have home-ground advantage, are favourites to lift the trophy this year. However, the Griquas are unlikely to have forgotten their controversial 39-35 defeat in Nelspruit earlier in the competition.

The good news for both teams – the fans and for rugby as a whole – is that the final will be fully televised, and a television match official (TMO) will be in use, something that has been missing throughout much of the tournament and has contributed to several contentious moments. Even during last week’s semi-finals, there were a few debatable decisions that could easily have resulted in a completely different final line-up.

Gustav du Rand. Photo: Morgan Piek

Despite their earlier loss to the Pumas, the Griquas have put that behind them and head into the final with momentum after hard-fought wins over the Toyota Cheetahs under pressure – something the Pumas haven’t experienced much of in this competition, particularly in the lead-up to the final.

Griquas head coach Pieter Bergh told OFM Sport that while a few areas needed fine-tuning, the team would not be abandoning the formula that has brought them success and back-to-back final appearances.

“It’s important that we don’t move away from what got us into this final. We’ve played some really good rugby. We’ve told the players to understand what the Pumas’ strengths are, but also to recognise and stick to our own,” said Bergh.

“We’ve played an attacking brand of rugby all year, and we mustn’t go away from that. We feel we’re creating a lot of opportunities with our attack. If you suddenly change that just because it’s a final, then you’re moving away from your strengths.

“For us, the key this week will be decision-making – knowing when to run and when to kick. There are always big moments in a game, and we need to come out on top in more of those. There’ll be times when we’re under pressure, and we need to manage that well, defend well, and avoid conceding penalties.

“Finals are about the full package – solid set-pieces, good discipline, and strong defence. We know we’ll create chances on attack, but we’ve got to lay the foundation up front. Good defence and discipline win you trophies. So we understand what needs to be done, but we also know we mustn’t lose sight of what’s brought us here.”

Bobby Alexander. Photo: Morgan Piek

Saturday’s SA Cup final between the Pumas and the Griquas at Mbombela Stadium kicks off at 18:30.

Pumas - 15 Tino Swanepoel, 14 Lundi Msenge, 13 Sango Xamlashe, 12 Wian van Niekerk, 11 Darren Adonis, 10 Danrich Visagie, 9 Ross Braude, 8 Willie Engelbrecht, 7 Ruwald van der Merwe, 6 Ntsika Fisanti, 5 Jeandré Leonard, 4 Heinz Bertram, 3 Sampie Swiegers, 2 Eduan Swart, 1 Etienne Janeke

Replacements - 16 Darnell Osuagwu, 17 Stephan de Jager, 18 Dewald Maritz, 19 Kwanda Dimaza, 20 André Fouché, 21 Clinton Swart, 22 Jaycee Nel, 23 Stephan Coetzee

Griquas - 15 Cameron Hufke, 14 Dylan Maart, 13 Zane Bester, 12 Mnombo Zwelendaba, 11 Gurswin Wehr, 10 George Whitehead (captain), 9 Thomas Bursey, 8 Gustav Erlank, 7 Marco de Witt, 6 Lourens Oosthuizen, 5 Albert Liebenberg, 4 Dylan Sjoblom, 3 Cebo Dlamini, 2 Janco Uys, 1 Leon Lyons

Replacements - 16 Gustav du Rand, 17 Eddie Davids, 18 Junior Banda, 19 Athenkosi Khethani, 20 Phumzile Maqondwana, 21 Bobby Alexander, 22 Tylor Sefoor, 23 Tom Nel

OFM Sport/Morgan Piek cg