DAVID SHAPSHAK, Johannesburg | Saturday 7.30pm.
CHESTER Williams scored a try and made another to set up the Cats’ 22-18 win in Saturday’s rain-delayed Super 12 clash at Ellis Park in Johannesburg.
Although the game was a tight, evenly matched affair, Williams sparked the two first half backline moves that resulted in tries. The Cats led 16-15 at the break.
The right wing dotted down his try, the game’s first, in the far left corner from a movement he began over on his side when he intercepted a wayward pass, setting up the ruck from which recycled ball reached him via a long, skipped pass.
Two minutes later, the 1995 World Cup hero darted inside and offloaded to hooker Leon Boshoff.
Although Kobus Engelbrecht missed both conversions, he slotted two penalties to give the home side their slim half time lead.
Braam van Straaten, the hard-hitting flyhalf whose kicking last week secured the Stormers 22-15 win over the Waratahs, again kept his side in the running with four first half penalties. Percy Montgomery dropped from an acute angle after Van Straaten’s first three pointer opened the scoring.
The only second half scores came through two Engelbrecht penalties, while Montgomery added another drop goal.
Both sides struggled with a slippery ball and sodden pitch from a thunderstorm that delayed kick-off for half an hour, while rain began to fall in the second half.
Even so, the high penalty count against each side were for non-handling indiscretions, mostly form killing the ball on the ground or backlines being offsides.
Laurie Mains’ Cats loose forwards had the upper hand on their home turf. Captain Andre Vos was named man of the match while his giant fellow Springbok flanker, Andre Venter, was always on the hunt and making telling charges.
Breyton Paulse was the pick of the Stormers’ all Springbok backline, making numerous trademark breaks and chip aheads, but strong defence kept him out. His midfield colleague, Robbie Fleck, was stretchered off with suspected concussion when Cats lock Victor Matfield accidentally connected with the centre’s head as he went down from an ankle tap.