5 Sports Matches You Can’t Afford To Miss This Weekend

The weekend is here and there are some epic encounters to keep you eye on, including some massive international rugby Tests, the return of the Premier League, and the kick-off of the local ABSA Premiership in SA.

Wallabies vs All Blacks (Rugby Championship)

Saturday, 12:05

All Blacks visits to Australia in the lead-up to Rugby World Cups have not been especially successful and Sydney on Saturday is a repeat of the 2011 exercise with the Rugby Championship hanging on the outcome.

Australia are clearly on the road to recovery under coach Michael Cheika. He has players from his Waratahs side who won the 2014 Super Rugby title and who were knocked out in the semi-finals in 2015 while the Brumbies were beaten semi-finalists this year. That lifts confidence, even if the two semi-final winners were from New Zealand. The All Blacks on the other hand have been on a startling run which has seen them lose only twice since the last World Cup while they have introduced some vital new ingredients to maintain the potency of their mix.

Manchester United vs Tottenham (Premier League football)

Saturday, 13:45

Louis van Gaal’s new-look Manchester United side will be desperate to avoid a second successive opening-day setback at Old Trafford when Tottenham Hotspur visit for the start of the Premier League season this weekend.

Having delivered a fourth-place finish, van Gaal has overseen an extensive squad overhaul that places the spotlight firmly on him and his new recruits aim to win United’s first Premier League title since 2012/13.

Like van Gaal at United, Mauricio Pochettino is about to embark on his second season as Tottenham Hotspur head coach and breaking into the top four is again his target this season.

Springboks vs Argentina (Rugby Championship)

Saturday, 17:05

South Africa will need to be more clinical if they are get back to winning ways when they host Argentina in their final match of this year’s Rugby Championship at King’s Park on Saturday. 

Much has been said of the morale-sapping defeats to Australia and New Zealand last month where they dominated for long stretches but gave up the games from winning positions late on.

They can now ill-afford what would be a first ever defeat to Argentina with the World Cup in England looming next month. There have been positives for the Springboks in this Rugby Championship though, most notably the centre-pairing of Damien de Allende and Jesse Kriel, though the latter moves to the wing to accommodate Jean De Villiers at outside centre in this test.

Chelsea vs Swansea (Premier League football)

Saturday, 18:30

All eyes will be on defending champions Chelsea as they take on Swansea this weekend at Stamford Bridge.

Mourinho’s men are favourites to retain the title next season despite not adding many players to their current squad. With the same solid spine from last year involving Terry, Fabregas and Costa, they should have more than enough to dominate at home.

Swansea have some interesting new signings, but they will have to have to produce the goods as they have only scored 3 goals in their last 6 games against the title holders.

Wits vs Ajax Cape Town (ABSA Premiership football)

Saturday, 20:15

With both Wits and Ajax Cape Town having achieved positive results in the MTN8, this has the makings of a decent contest and home advantage has proved crucial in recent meetings.

Last season the Urban Warriors won 3-1 in Cape Town, while the return match in Johannesburg saw the Clever Boys claim a 4-2 home victory.

In head-to-head stats, Wits and Ajax have met in 30 league matches since 1999/2000. The record is dead-even, with 10 wins each, while 10 matches have been drawn. The Clever Boys have scored four more goals (31 to 27).

What sports encounter are you most looking forward to this weekend? Any predictions on who will come out victorious?