The 1997 Currie Cup was the 59th season of the Currie Cup, South Africa's premier domestic rugby union competition, since it started in 1889. The competition was known as the Bankfin Currie Cup for sponsorship reasons and was contested from 28 May to 25 October 1997.
The competition was won by for the 29th time in their history; they beat the 14–12 in the final played on 25 October 1997.
Competition rules and information
There were fourteen participating teams in the 1997 Currie Cup. These teams played all the other teams once over the course of the season, either at home or away.
Teams received four points for a win and two points for a draw. Bonus points were awarded to teams that scored four or more tries in a game, as well as to teams that lost a match by seven points or less. Teams were ranked by log points, then points difference (points scored less points conceded). The top 4 teams qualified for the title play-offs. In the semi-finals, the team that finished first had home advantage against the team that finished fourth, while the team that finished second had home advantage against the team that finished third. The winners of these semi-finals advanced to the final, at the home venue of the higher-placed team.
Teams
Team listing
1997 Currie Cup teams Team Sponsored Name Stadium/s Sponsored Name Bokomo Boland Boland Stadium Border Waverley Park Eastern Province PE Stadium Free State Cheetahs Vodacom Park Gauteng Falcons Bosman Stadium Isak Steyl Stadium Gauteng Lions Ellis Park Stadium Griqualand West ABSA Park Mpumalanga Pumas Johann van Riebeeck Stadium North West Olën Park Northern Free State North West Stadium Northern Transvaal Minolta Loftus Pietersburg Pietersburg Sharks University of Natal SWD Eagles Outeniqua Park Norwich Western Province Fedsure Park Newlands
Changes from 1996
The two sections used in 1996, Section A and Section B, were merged into a single division for 1997, with all teams playing each other once. The team also adopted the new rugby union bonus points system, which was previously used in the 1996 Super 12 season.
Also, there were several name changes: were renamed the . were renamed the . were renamed the . were renamed the . were renamed the . were renamed the . were renamed .
Log The final log of the round-robin stage of the 1997 Currie Cup:
Matches
The following matches were played in the 1997 Currie Cup:
Round one
Round two
Round three
Round four
Round five
Round six
Round seven
Round eight
Round nine
Round ten
Round eleven
Round twelve
Round thirteen
Round fourteen
Round fifteen
Round sixteen
Round seventeen
Round eighteen
Semi-finals
Final
Honours
The honour roll for the 1997 Currie Cup was:
1997 Currie Cup Honours Champions: (29th title)
Notes
References