Had they beaten the Golden Lions at Ellis Park in Saturday’s headline match, to make it a formidable six wins from six starts, a home semi-final would have seemed a near-certainty even with a full four rounds of pre-knockout activity left.
That still looks a very good prospect, and they probably remain smartest money for a possible home final too ... but a runaway table-topping finish has suddenly become that bit less likely for the blue-and-whites.
A fired-up and fleet-footed Lions outfit, brushing aside a period of inconsistent form, were enormous value for their 35-33 victory in an exhilarating exhibition of running rugby, and by earning five log points to WP’s desperately late-banked one, advanced to within four points of Province.
It was a deceptive score-line, given that the visitors had been put to bed as the Lions registered five tries in opening up a commanding 35-19 advantage before a spirited second wind - considering the way they’d been pinned back for large passages - netted Juan de Jongh’s side two converted tries in the dying minutes to make it look more of a volatile humdinger than deserved to be the case.
The WP skipper got his maths wrong in lauding his charges on television afterwards for their eleventh-hour surge, saying that they’d banked two bonus points - in fact, they ended with only three tries rather than the four he clearly assumed they’d achieved from a breathless encounter.
But they had clawed back a modicum of self-respect late on, considering how rare it is for a WP (or Stormers in Super Rugby) combo to leak so many tries themselves.
That they did so was indicative of the fact that the no-nonsense efforts of the Lions pack ensured a huge territorial monopoly, and in a high-tempo clash forced Province into a constant tackling mode that took a physical and stamina toll - they were looking less and less adhesive defensively until the mini-comeback just before and then well after the final siren.
The competition leaders can claim mitigation from the surrender of two starting XV forwards - flank Siya Kolisi and hooker Stephan Coetzee - to injury before the finish of the first quarter.
In the case of the last-named player, it forced a particularly ring-rusty Scarra Ntubeni into a full hour of action off the bench - all too often in retreat - at high altitude.
But the Lions had some casualties of their own, including what appeared a pretty serious leg injury to lock MB Lusaseni who went off on the buggy.
They had several inspirational characters on the day, and none more so than their low-centre-of-gravity No 2 Armand van der Merwe, who gave WP all sorts of problems with his barrelling runs in a performance reminiscent of the go-forward someone like Lukas van Biljon used to provide in either a Springbok or provincial jersey.
This game arguably only enhanced the likelihood, through its quality, that these two foes – now 1-1 in meetings in this year’s Currie Cup – will go all the way to the showpiece on October 25.
Also intriguing is the fact that they play exactly the same quartet of teams in the remaining run-up to the semis: Griquas, Pumas, Cheetahs and Sharks.
Somewhere, the Lions may need to eke out an extra win if they are to stand a chance of eclipsing Province to top spot after ordinary season.
The giant-killing Pumas had something of a humbling correction on Saturday as they were beaten in Kimberley by in-form Griquas, a result that saw them slip one notch to third and with several tough fixtures ahead.
Was the 30-30 outcome against the Cheetahs in Bloemfontein a good or bad result for the defending champion Sharks?
It may have been good in the sense that it snapped a two-game losing streak, but it was also a bit damaging because they had seemed on course for a morale-boosting win until the Free Staters’ unerring flyhalf Willie du Plessis landed a high-pressure penalty in the 81st minute to see each team register two log points from the stalemate.
The Sharks thus stay fourth, a full eight points off the lead.
Next weekend’s fixtures (home teams first):
Friday, September 26
Lions v Pumas - 19:10
Saturday, September 27
Western Province v Griquas - 15:00
Blue Bulls v Sharks - 17:05
EP Kings v Free
State Cheetahs - 19:10
*Follow
our chief writer on Twitter: @RobHouwing