Ken Borland

Storming flanker Wimpie van der Walt scored the crucial try as the EP Kings edged the Profert Leopards 23-20 (halftime 13-13) in their Absa Currie Cup First Division match at Olen Park in Potchefstroom on Friday.

But the Leopards gained a crucial bonus point and will continue in the competition as the fourth-placed team into the semifinals.

Van der Walt, who went on several barnstorming runs through the game, scored the crucial try in the 47th minute to give the Kings a vital 23-13 cushion in a hard-fought game.

The Leopards piled on the pressure in the final quarter and it told when referee Tiaan Jonker ran around under the poles and awarded them a penalty try, with flyhalf Andre Pretorius kicking the conversion to close the gap to 20-23.

And to make matters worse for the Kings, replacement lock Darron Nell was yellow-carded for the offence that led to the penalty try.

But the log-topping Eastern Province side showed tremendous courage and determination in defence as they held off the Leopards to secure their 12th win and an unbeaten run into the semifinals.

The Leopards, playing for a semifinal place in front of their home crowd, came out firing and gave the Kings a torrid opening quarter and led 10-0 after 25 minutes.

Pretorius kicked a penalty and converted Edgar Marutlulle’s try as the hooker showed good pace and strength to barge over.

Up until then, the competition favourites had been all barks but they showed their bite through flyhalf Wesley Dunlop who scored 13 points in six minutes with two penalties and a try which he converted.

The Leopards had the last say in the first half with a Pretorius penalty, before Dunlop started the dramatic second half with a penalty to stretch the visitors lead to 16-13 before Van der Walt’s moment of glory.

SCORERS

PROFERT LEOPARDS – Tries: Edgar Marutlulle, penalty try. Conversions: Andre Pretorius (2). Penalties: Pretorius (2).

EP KINGS – Tries: Wesley Dunlop, Wimpie van der Walt. Conversions: Dunlop (2). Penalties: Dunlop (3).

http://www.supersport.com/rugby/currie-cup-first-division/news/120928/Kings_grab_crucial_win

The SWD Eagles piled on the pressure in the second half to beat the Valke 45-11 (halftime 12-6) in their Absa Currie Cup First Division match at Outeniqua Park in George on Saturday.

The bonus-point win takes the Eagles to 43 log points and the men from the South-Western Districts will now face an anxious wait to see whether the Griffons or Leopards can earn a point from their matches tonight to deny them a semifinal place.

The weighty Valke pack caused the Eagles some problems in the first half and flyhalf Karlo Aspeling kicked two penalties in the first quarter to give the Gautengers a 6-0 lead.

The Eagles made life difficult for themselves with sloppy handling and trying to run ball off the back foot and they needed two dodgy yellow cards to the Valke before they could take the lead.

Flanks Wesley Kotze (high tackle) and Frederick Eksteen (alleged trip) were sent to the sin bin in the 27th and 41st minutes and the Eagles responded immediately with tries on both occasions.

In the 28th minute, the home side eventually got the ball wide from a series of rucks and quick hands by flyhalf Burton Francis sent fullback Elric van Vuuren over for the try.

With George delivering her famous cold-and-wet weather, handling and expansive play were tough and the Eagles began using the rolling maul to good effect. Just before halftime, flank Dumisane Meslane, who played with great energy throughout, burst from a maul and darted down on the blindside for the second try, which Van Vuuren converted.

Van Vuuren has wonderful hands as well as an accurate boot and his nifty back-flip sent Meslane racing clear two minutes after the break, the loose forward then showing good vision to draw three defenders and pass back inside for the fullback to score.

Van Vuuren’s second conversion increased the lead to 19-6 and that became 26-6 in the 49th minute with the bonus-point try by wing Alshaun Bock.

Rugby can be a tough mistress and she turned ugly on Valke flyhalf Karlo Aspeling, who had enjoyed a good first half. First he missed a penalty kick to touch and then, when he received the ball back from the Eagles, he tried a chip kick which was gathered by Bock.

The well-travelled 30-year-old wing swerved away from Aspeling and then burst down the right touchline to score, Van Vuuren converting.

The Valke were now chasing the game and captain and lock Johan de Bruin evaded the blindside defence to score from a ruck in the 54th minute, following on the good work of Eksteen and centre Hendrik Meyer in creating front-foot ball.

But the Eagles broke free again in the final quarter and soared to a strong finish with three more tries.

Captain and eighthman Wilhelm Koch took a tap penalty and darted over from a scrum close to the line, before replacement scrumhalf Mzo Dyanti broke blind and put a grubber through. Van Vuuren’s kick infield was a vital touch and it allowed wing Ghafoer Luckan to gather and speed over for the try.

Replacement flank Shaun Raubenheimer completed the scoring as he powered down the blindside following a strong drive by replacement hooker Sidney Tobias.

SCORERS

SWD Eagles – Tries: Elric van Vuuren (2), Dumisane Meslane, Alshaun Bock, Wilhelm Koch, Ghafoer Luckan, Shaun Raubenheimer. Conversions: Van Vuuren (5).
Valke – Try: Johan de Bruin. Penalties: Karlo Aspeling (2).

http://www.supersport.com/rugby/currie-cup-first-division/news/120928/Eagles_beat_Valke_with_bonus_point

The Border Bulldogs were rolled over easily as the Ford Pumas thumped them 41-10 (half-time 24-3) in their Absa Currie Cup First Division match at the Mbombela Stadium in Nelspruit on Saturday.

The scoreline certainly did not lie in terms of the Pumas’ dominance as their powerful pack took firm control in damp conditions and their backline had more pace and precision than their Bulldogs counterparts.

The bonus-point win maintained the Pumas’ challenge for top spot, although the EP Kings are still in prime positon with an eight-point lead over the Mpumalanga side with two rounds of league play remaining.

The Pumas took a little while to settle in front of 14 305 people at Mbombela Stadium, but they opened the scoring in the 15th minute as star fullback Coenie van Wyk crossed for a thrilling try.

Border flyhalf Reinhardt Gerber pulled three points back for the Bulldogs with a 22nd-minute penalty, but the rest of the half was a cruise for the Pumas as they comfortably adapted to the wet conditions, thanks to their gritty forwards.

Scrumhalf Shaun Venter, who sparked numerous attacks, went over for the Pumas’ second try two minutes later and centre and captain JW Jonker showed his experience as he glided over three minutes later.

The reliable boot of flyhalf Naas Olivier accounted for all three conversions and the well-travelled 30-year-old also kicked a penalty in the 34th minute to ensure the Pumas reached the break in firm control.

Olivier also began the second-half scoring with a penalty, stretching the lead to 27-3 and, just two minutes later, the Pumas quickly spread the ball wide and wing Wilhelm Loock, who gave a typically passionate display, crossed for the try.

Despite looking all at sea for the last half-hour, the Bulldogs did manage to score a try of their own through centre Neill Jacobs, with Gerber turning it into a seven-pointer with the conversion.

But the Pumas rounded-off an action-packed display as Venter punched his way through for his second try and Mpumalanga’s fifth overall.

The Punas will go into their last two round-robin games needing to make up ground on the Kings to qualify for a home final.

The crunch game is next Friday against the Kings at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, with the Pumas then finishing the league section against the Griffons back at the Mbombela Stadium.

SCORERS

FORD PUMAS – Tries: Coenie van Wyk, Shaun Venter (2), JW Jonker, Wilhelm Loock. Conversions: Naas Olivier (4), Carl Bezuidenhout. Penalties: Olivier (2).

BORDER BULLDOGS – Try: Neill Jacobs. Conversion: Reinhardt Gerber. Penalty: Gerber.

http://www.supersport.com/rugby/currie-cup-first-division/news/120915/Pumas_thump_Bulldogs_in_Nelspruit

The Eastern Province Kings thrilled their home crowd as they overwhelmed the Griffons 60-19 in their Absa Currie Cup First Division match at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth on Friday.

The tightly-knit Kings pack and their suffocating defence shut the Griffons out of the match from early on in a top-class performance by Eastern Province.

The win was set up up front by a dominant pack, who ruled the scrums with a fist of iron, and a now familiar rolling maul that saw loose forward Luke Watson cross for a hat-trick of tries.

But the Kings also boasted a slick, clinical backline, with Samoan Paul Perez a juggernaut on the wing.

Perez was the man who set the ball rolling for the Kings with a marvellous try, running 50 metres and bumping off half-a-dozen tacklers on his way to the tryline. Unsurprisingly, he was the go-to man whenever the Kings wanted momentum out wide.

The Kings backline was also efficient in capitalising on their front-foot ball and fullback SP Marais and centre Tiger Mangweni also scored before the first half was ended with Watson’s first try, giving Eastern Province a 29-0 lead at the break.

Although the match was totally one-sided, the Griffons did fight back in the second half with tries by centres Japie Nel and Werner Griesel. But they were missing the sheer physicality and precision of the Kings and were clearly going to finish the day as also-rans, despite being third on the log at the start of the game.

Flyhalf George Whitehead, loose forward Cornell du Preez (fittingly as he was the outstanding player of the night), replacement centre Siyanda Grey and Watson, twice, all crossed the tryline for the Kings in the second half as they cantered to victory in far more impressive fashion than even they probably presumed.

SCORERS:

Eastern Province Kings – Tries: Paul Perez, SP Marais, Tiger Mangweni, Luke Watson (3), George Whitehead, Cornell du Preez, Siyanda Grey. Conversions: Whitehead (6). Penalty: Whitehead.

Griffons – Tries: Japie Nel, Werner Griesel, Nicky Steyn. Conversions: Hansie Graaff (2).

http://www.supersport.com/rugby/currie-cup-first-division/news/120914/Kings_beat_Griffons