The Griffons and Griquas’ unbeaten status will be on the line when they clash in round 4 of the SA Cup on Saturday afternoon.

The Northern Free Staters and the defending champions from Kimberley are two of the three remaining unbeaten teams in the competition.

In the remaining fixtures, the 2-1 Valke host second-placed Pumas – the other unbeaten team in the competition – in Kempton Park, the Cheetahs will be eager to get their campaign back on track when they travel to take on Eastern Province, the Boland Kavaliers host the SWD Eagles in Wellington, and the Border Bulldogs welcome the Leopards to East London.

With a third of the league phase now completed, the race for the top four places – and qualification for this year’s Currie Cup Premier Division – is becoming clearer. Currently, the unbeaten trio of Griquas, Pumas, and Griffons lead the standings with 15 points each.

The Valke are in fourth place with 10 points, followed by Boland (8 points) and the Cheetahs (7) in fifth and sixth place, respectively.

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The Griffons are counting on home-ground advantage in Welkom to be decisive when they face Griquas who have amassed 252 points at an average of 84 points per game this season, while conceding only 25 points.

The Welkom-based side will need a strong defensive effort to contend with the competition’s most prolific try-scoring team, which includes a former Blitzboks speedster in Gurshwin Wehr.

Expect Wehr – who played his rugby in Welkom last year – and Griffons playmaker Andrew Kota to play important roles in this encounter. Kota is the leading points scorer with 49 points, while Wehr tops the try-scoring chart with seven tries.

Elsewhere, the Pumas are favourites to crash-tackle the Valke at the Barnard Stadium, but they can’t afford to underestimate the East Randers, despite the men from Mpumalanga boasting a better defensive effort in their three games to date.

After two losses on the road, the Kavaliers are hoping to turn the corner when they host the Eagles. Boland easily won the corresponding fixture last year in George and will target this game to bounce back to winning ways after last week’s setback in Kempton Park.

And the Border Bulldogs and Leopards will scrap in East London, both teams searching for a first win of the campaign.