The Lions ground their way to a well deserved 29-20 win over Western Province at Ellis Park to clinch their first home Currie Cup final since 2002.

Odwa Ndungane's return to the wing in place of the injured JP Pietersen is the only change to the Sharks' starting line-up for the Currie Cup final.

Western Province opted for the tried and tested when they named their side to play against the Sharks in Saturday's Currie Cup final in Durban.

Western Province coach Allister Coetzee has banished his squad from its training base for a few days in an effort to combat player fatigue.

Western Province reached the Currie Cup final for the first time since 2001 following their awe-inspiring 31-7 win over the Free State Cheetahs.

There will be a decided Oceania presence in the Western Province backline when Matt Toomua and Sireli Naqelevuki run out at Newlands on Saturday.

Western Province were consigned to the 2008 Currie Cup scrapheap despite beating the Lions 14-6 at Newlands on Saturday evening.

The Leopards qualified for a play-off in the quarterfinals of the Vodacom Cup competition on Friday night by beating the Wildebeest 37-32 in the Woodburn Stadium in Pietermaritzburg. In other matches, the Blue Bulls, Boland Kavaliers and Free State Cheetahs also emerged victorious.

The Free State Cheetahs emphasised that they are top contenders to lift the Vodacom Cup title this year with a solid 34-20 win over the Pumas in Witbank on Friday night. In other matches, the Wildebeest beat the Griffons 33-7 in Welkom and a brace of tries by Wylie Human sealed another victory for Western Province.

Western Province (WP) laboured to a 51-7 Vodacom Cup victory over the Griffons at Bellville South on Saturday afternoon, after leading 32-0 at the break. In Wellington, the Boland Kavaliers scored an unconvincing 31-22 win over the Valke, and the Leopards ran out a comfortable 32-14 win over Eastern Province in Port Elizabeth.