After taking the Carling Currie Cup to communities around KwaZulu-Natal and beyond, the Hollywoodbets Sharks XV return to the Tank this Friday, 28 August. Hollywoodbets Kings Park will host its first Sharks XV match of the 2026 Carling Currie Cup campaign when the Vodacom Bulls XV arrive for the final league-stage fixture. And there is still plenty at stake. Kick-off is at 19:15
The Hollywoodbets Sharks XV enter the final round with a mathematical chance of reaching the semi-finals. It is a narrow road, one that requires results elsewhere to fall their way, but importantly, the door remains open. And if there is one place you would want to make one final push, it is home.
A SEASON ON THE ROAD
This Sharks XV have experienced a Currie Cup campaign unlike many before them. They have taken the competition into KwaMashu. They have made Woodburn Stadium their temporary home in Pietermaritzburg. They have taken the Sharks to the people. Now, the people get their Sharks back.
The Shark Tank awaits.
BUILDING THE NEXT SHARKS
But the story of this team has never been solely about the league table. Head Coach Mike Vowles was entrusted with a youthful squad and a very particular challenge: to integrate, expose and develop players who can make an impact at higher honours within the Sharks Rugby Club. For these players, the Carling Currie Cup has been a classroom as much as a competition.
They have been tested. They have been stretched. They have been given responsibility. And they have been given something invaluable: senior rugby experience. That matters for a Club building its future. The players taking the field on Friday are not simply the Sharks XV of today. They are part of the generation that will help shape the next era of Sharks rugby.
THE TANK. AT LAST.
There is something fitting about bringing this particular campaign home. The Sharks XV have spent the league stage travelling, connecting and growing - both as a team and as a Club. Now they return to Kings Park, wearing the black and white, with one final opportunity to keep their semi-final hopes alive. One more league game. One more chance. One homecoming.
COME HOME TO THE TANK
Hollywoodbets Sharks XV v Vodacom Bulls XV. The final league-stage fixture of the Carling Currie Cup. The first Sharks XV game at home this campaign.
And a young Sharks side with everything still to play for.
Friday night. Hollywoodbets Kings Park. See you at the Tank.
-The Sharks
