The Pumas continued their good form in the Vodacom Cup and beat the Lions 35-29 in a tight match played in Witbank on Friday night.
The scores were deadlocked at 16-16 at the break. The Pumas again have the irrepressible Casper Steyn to thank for the victory, with the former Blue Bulls player successfully kicking eight attempts at goal, six of them penalties.
The Lions did pick up a bonus point.
The Blue Bulls had to come back from an eight-point deficit at half-time to secure a 39-21 victory against the Bulldogs in East London.
Down 13-21 at the break, the Bulls had to call on all their depth to secure the victory.
Coach Ashley Evert will be a concerned man having seen his side struggle again, and this after the loss last week to the Wildebeest.
Log leaders the Falcons condemned the Cheetahs to another loss in round three, winning 26-15 in Brakpan. Leading 13-3 at half-time, the Falcons managed a win despite good pressure from the visitors.
Good news for the Cheetahs franchise was the return to play of former All Black centre Keith Lowen, who scored a try.
In Kimberley, Western Province secured their first win of the competition with a 48-42 (half-time 23-19) win over Griquas in Kimberley.
After consecutive defeats against Eastern Province and the Lions, the Cape Town team finally put their season on track in an entertaining, if error-strewn, encounter.
The visitors scored five tries to the four of the home team and were justly rewarded for making the most of their chances, while the Griquas squandered possession and have now slumped to their second loss of the season.
In the final game of the night, Leopards flyhalf Zane Reynders kicked 18 points to lead his side to a nailbiting 33-32 victory over the Elephants in Port Elizabeth.
The North West side led 27-14 at the break, and had to fight off a spirited comeback from the Eastern Cape men. — Sapa