The Impala Leopards beat the Boland Cavaliers by 31-28 in a first-division Absa Currie Cup match in Potchefstroom on Saturday.
The Leopards took revenge for losing the division final to the Cavaliers last season.
It was not an easy victory as the visitors scored two tries in the first half and led by 11 points at the break with 18-7.
After the break a rejuvenated Leopards moved into the lead in 12 minutes (21-18) with two splendid tries. The visitors could not recover from this onslaught but never gave up.
The Cavaliers scored the last try of the match after a heel against the head to bring them within three points of the Leopards.
Leopard loosehead prop Jaco Engels had a storming game, doing good work in the set pieces, then had enough energy left to join the backs in some excellent runs. He scored a try and handled the ball twice in the move that lead to Frans Viljoen’s try.
The Cavaliers impressed with solid defence from midfielders Piet van Zyl and Jacques Badenhorst. The team’s ball retention was very good.
The Leopards were dangerous when they created some open space.
The battle among the forwards was hard, with neither side giving way.
The game became slightly rough towards the end of the first half when the home team had 14 players and the visitors only 13 after yellow cards were issued to calm the tempers. — Sapa