The Golden Lions on Saturday further entrenched their position in the top four of the Currie Cup competition when they beat Western Province 19-16 in a scintillating match at Ellis Park.
In other matches, the Sharks beat Griquas 24-14, log leaders Cheetahs were lucky to beat the Boland Cavaliers 22-20, Eastern Province gained a 25-20 victory over the Griffons and the Pumas had a narrow win over the Impala Leopards.
The Ellis Park victory puts the Lions into third position on the Currie Cup log, while Western Province’s chances of a semifinal berth must be fading fast after this loss, which sees them lose touch with the four front-runners.
There were perhaps still too many instances of poor handling, wrong decision-making and penalty transgressions to make this a classic, but for sheer pace, excitement and adrenaline it was a match that will bring the supporters back to Ellis Park.
Everything was done at full pace by both sides, and the Lions, in particular, were perhaps guilty of rushing their play a little — especially early on.
They were in total control for the first 25 minutes and had a well-deserved lead via three Louis Strydom penalties to show for it. The try that they so deserved, however, eluded them.
Against the run of play, Western Province then put together three phases of quality running for Fijian giant wing Sireli Naqelevuki to put them into a somewhat fortuitous 10-9 lead just before half-time with a try where Conrad Jantjes did the hard and clever yards.
With the visitors leading by 16-12 with 11 minutes left on the clock, it was big Lions number eight Willem Alberts who did brilliantly after another great run from fullback Louis Ludik to put Jannie Boshoff in for what proved to be the winning try.
Speaking of Alberts, his interplay with fellow loose forwards Cobus Grobbelaar and captain Ernst Joubert was something special. But not far behind were Robbie Diack and Justin Melck who started off with flanker Pieter Louw, a late replacement for Luke Watson. He was, however, replaced in the 12th minute because of what seemed a knee injury, and the visitors’ pace to the loose ball suffered as a consequence.
Another contest to savour was that between young man-of-the-match Ludik and experienced Jantjes at fullback, who were both dangerous every time they touched the ball.
Perhaps the Lions deserved it, albeit just, but it was fitting that a near-try after a long run downfield from Western Province was the last move of a match to remember for its pace and adventure.
Comfortable victory for Sharks
Locked at 7-7 at the end of an error-riddled first-half, the Sharks scored three further tries during the opening 13 minutes of the second stanza to lead 24-7 and eventually beat Griquas 24-14 in their Currie Cup fixture played at Absa Park, Kimberley, on Saturday afternoon.
AJ Venter’s team returned home with a full-house five points. For the home team, the cupboard was disappointingly bare.
Playing against a much-changed Griquas starting line-up in which scrumhalf Eben Olivier and fit-again inside-centre Herkie Kruger were surprise choices, Gareth Krause’s team played their best rugby of the match in the opening 40 minutes.
With both teams prepared to run the ball at every opportunity, it should have been a rugby spectacle — but wasn’t. Perhaps it was the frenetic pace at which the match began, but both teams were guilty of numerous basic mistakes, including handling errors and forward passes.
Luck on Cheetahs’ side
Log leaders Cheetahs were rather lucky to beat a highly motivated Boland Cavaliers side 22-20 in their Currie Cup match played in Wellington on Saturday afternoon. The Free Staters led 19-10 at the interval.
The Cheetahs had to hang on desperately in the last 20 minutes as the Cavaliers launched one attack after another. But the home team have only themselves to blame that they did not cause the upset of the season. They wasted several scoring opportunities, and bad handling at crucial times let them down. It was a very relieved Cheetahs side at the final siren.
The visitors’ forwards played with great determination, but playing conditions did not suit their back line and they struggled to get into top gear. Captain Rory Duncan, the man of the match, admitted afterwards his side was happy just to hang on to their two-point lead.
The Cheetahs, unbeaten after eight matches, could not score a fourth try to secure an extra bonus point. The Cavaliers, however, gained a bonus point for losing by less than seven points.
Vital win for Elephants
Eastern Province gained a vital and well-deserved 25-20 victory over the Griffons in an Absa Currie Cup first-division rugby match played in Port Elizabeth on Saturday night after leading 18-13 at half-time.
The win kept the Elephants in the hunt for a place in the play-offs at the end of the season, while it was a major setback for the Griffons in their search for a place in the top echelons of South African rugby.
The Griffons remain in second spot on the log, but Eastern Province have closed the gap considerably following their win.
The home side impressed considerably in the opening 20 minutes and were able to put 13 points on the board before the Griffons realised what was happening.
Though the Griffons fought back gallantly and attacked the Eastern Province try line in the closing stages in a bid to score the winning try, they were held out by a solid defence.
Narrow win for Pumas
The Pumas had a narrow, two-point win over the Impala Leopards in Potchefstroom on Saturday when the final whistle went with the score at 24-22.
The Leopards had a six-point lead at the break (15-9), but the Pumas wiped it out and took a nine-point lead in the first 17 minutes of the second half.
The two fullbacks dominated play. Riaan Smit scored 19 of the Pumas’ points and Anvor Schooney contributed 17 of the Leopards’ points. — Sapa