The Free State Cheetahs held off a determined Border Bulldogs XV to win their Currie Cup match 18-12 at the Absa Stadium.
The Bulldogs, after being on the defensive for much of the second half, launched a series of late attacks as they desperately hunted a try and only a big-hearted Cheetahs defensive effort denied them.
In the end, it was as much the steady boot of Cheetahs’ flyhalf Willem de Waal as well as the Bulldogs’ indiscipline that won the match. De Waal scored all his side’s points from six penalties and was only wide on one occasion.
Te Bulldogs, who crossed over for two first-half tries through flyhalf Reinard Gerber and wing Akona Ndungane, played a fiery opening 27 minutes to lead 12-3 at one stage, but three additional De Waal penalties had the teams level 12-12 at the break.
It was the Free Staters who took the game to their opponents from the re-start, but they were more often than not hurled back by some fanatical defence.
Two more De Waal penalties kept the Bulldog at bay, but it was close at the end with the Bulldogs coming close to scoring twice in an exciting finish to a game that offered some fantastic attacking rugby.
Elephants snatch victory
Three late second-half tries completed a stunning comeback for the Mighty Elephants as they snuck to a 32-31 victory over the Falcons in an Absa Currie Cup rugby fixture at Epru Stadium on Saturday.
The home side made mission improbable a reality as they fought their way back from a 24-10 deficit at half-time to a victory that secured them five points and the favour of a small crowd of about 500 people.
Apart from the first 10 minutes, the Falcons dominated for a large portion of the match but seemed to relax their defences with the score at 29-13 in their favour midway through the second half.
They were made to pay dearly for that indiscretion as the tenacious Elephants ran in three tries in the final 17 minutes. The last and winning try came from Elephants fullback Justin Peach in the 36th minute when he rounded off a backline movement following some fine driving play by the Elephants’ forwards.
Bulls maintain stronghold
The Blue Bulls maintained their stronghold in the Currie Cup competition at home ground Loftus on Saturday by beating the Boland Kavaliers 41-29 in a game that yielded 10 tries.
The Bulls scored six tries at one stage before Boland rallied late with three tries. Two of those came from Jongi Nokwe, who ran 50m both times, leaving Bulls defenders in his wake with his great speed.
The Bulls started in predictable fashion, mauling Boland into submission and scoring two tries. They had a 22-3 lead at the break, and extended it to 41-17 before Boland struck back with some long-range efforts.
The visitors managed to turn over ball in the tackles, thereby spoiling many Blue Bulls attacks, but the constant stream of possession from the home side proved too much for Boland, who played with passion, but not enough gunpowder.
Stand-outs for the Bulls were Wynand Olivier, Pedrie Wannenburg and Adriaan Fondse. Nokwe and Kobus le Roux fared best for the Boland team. — Sapa