Ken Borland

The four franchises in Sunfoil Series action from today are all disappointingly depleted due to the withdrawal of the Proteas and the South Africa A squad, but the bizhub Highveld Lions are targeting this weekend as a crucial time in their quest for their first four-day title.

The Lions are second on the log, just 2.72 points behind the Titans, who are not in action this weekend, and victory over the Nashua Cape Cobras in Potchefstroom will put them in prime position as the competition nears the halfway mark.

Lions coach Geoff Toyana is missing seven frontline players, but most of the replacements are well-versed in franchise cricket and he is aiming high against the defending champions.

“It’s always tough missing players, but I’m happy with the depth we have and we still have quite an experienced top six. This is a big game for us, it will define our season this competition. We beat the Cobras at Newlands in our last game, so our confidence is high and I just hope our skills match that,” Toyana told The Citizen yesterday.

Gulam Bodi, Dale Deeb, Vusi Mazibuko, Pumelela Matshikwe, Sean Jamison and Devon Conway are the players called up by the Lions, while the Cobras also have a host of players excluded by national commitments or injury.

Cobras coach Paul Adams has, however, been able to call on players from his RamSlam T20 Challenge winning team like Sybrand Engelbrecht, Dane Paterson, Lizaad Williams and George Linde, while much is expected of two players from the Western Province side – batsman Keegan Petersen and all-rounder Shaheen Khan.

Adams said he is looking for more partnerships from his top-order batsmen as the Cobras aim for their first win in their third match this season.

The Dolphins have made a strong start to the competition with 27.08 points from two games and they travel to East London to take on the struggling Warriors.

The Warriors have probably been the least affected by national call-ups with just Simon Harmer and Wayne Parnell unavailable and the Eastern Cape side have called up Border off-spinner Gionne Koopman, while the pace bowling duties will be in the hands of Andrew Birch, Basheer Walters and Aya Gqamane.

The healthy covering of grass on the Buffalo Park pitch will test the Dolphins, who have lost three key batsmen in Morne van Wyk, David Miller and Khaya Zondo, while bowling spearhead Kyle Abbott is also unavailable.

There were only 50 minutes of action for a decent Saturday crowd at SuperSport Park but it was highly pleasing fare for them as home-grown hero Dale Steyn destroyed the West Indies, bowling South Africa to victory by a massive innings and 220 runs, their second biggest win by an innings, in the first Test at Centurion.

Only their triumph over Sri Lanka at Newlands in the 2001 New Year’s Test, by an innings and 229 runs, has been bigger.

The West Indies batsmen resumed on 76-2 but were powerless to keep a rampant Steyn in check, the fast bowler taking six for 34 as the tourists were bundled out for 131, Kemar Roach again being unable to bat due to his ankle injury.

Steyn’s availability after bowling just five balls in the follow-on innings on Friday was a massive bonus for the injury-hit South Africans and even the most one-eyed West Indian supporter could not help but be impressed by a ferocious spell of fast bowling.

Leon Johnson and Marlon Samuels added 11 to the overnight score before the left-handed Johnson (39) tried to play a short delivery from Steyn just outside off stump. It was unnecessary, the ball got big on him and he could not get over it, edging a regulation catch to wicketkeeper AB de Villiers.

Given Shivnarine Chanderpaul’s recent form – 270 runs in his last three innings without being dismissed – his displays in this Test have been an anomaly: 21 in the first innings and then just 4 on Saturday before a Steyn bouncer was beautifully straight and did not get up as much as the 40-year-old expected, the left-hander gloving a simple catch to De Villiers.

By now Steyn was as lethal as a basilisk, all fiery glances and poetry in motion as he hit the popping crease. Samuels (17) and Denesh Ramdin (4) were dismissed within three balls in his fifth over of the morning, the former undone by a clever cutter that gripped and bounced more than expected, and the West Indies captain dismissed in more conventional fashion, prodding from the crease at an away-swinger, De Villiers leaping nimbly to take a spectacular one-handed catch in front of slip.

The West Indies were 105 for six and their effete tail was no match for the brilliance of Steyn.

The last specialist batsman, Jermaine Blackwood, lasted for 17 balls in scoring 15 before a well-directed Morkel lifter at the body had him caught  at short-leg, replacement fielder Temba Bavuma snatching up a sharp catch.

Three overs later, it was all over, Steyn having enacted a heavy toll on the West Indies to make up for his wicket-less first innings and claiming his best figures at the ground he called home for so many years.

 http://citizen.co.za/296877/dale-steyn-delivers-hammer-blow-proteas-crush-windies/

An epic weekend of SuperRugby action ended with the Sharks, Cheetahs and Southern Kings emerging as the big winners, furnishing themselves with the invaluable characteristic of being able to get the job done against the odds.

The improvement of the Sharks in their second half against the Crusaders was remarkable and their 21-17 victory looked implausible at half-time when the home side were creaking like one of the decrepit ships in the harbour not far away.

The Cheetahs showed that they now obviously have the belief to contend for the crown of Conference champions as they snuck home 26-24 against the Stormers, increasing the misery of one of the pre-tournament favourites.

And although the Southern Kings didn’t win, their 28-28 draw with the log-leading Brumbies in Canberra was one of the most unexpected results in the history of the competition.

The Sharks now lead the South African Conference by just three points from the Cheetahs, but have just come off the bye, with the Bulls and Stormers six and nine points behind respectively.

The break didn’t seem to have done the Sharks any good in the first half, though, as the Crusaders dominated the possession and territory stats and stressed the home side’s defence by attacking both close to the fringes and out wide.

The finishing of the Crusaders was poor, however, and the 11-9 half-time lead did not reflect the dominance they had enjoyed.

It was the unerring boot of flyhalf Pat Lambie that had kept the Sharks in the game with three penalties and, with their game undergoing a dramatic refurbishment after the break, he was able to kick four from four in the second half and give the Natalians just their third win in 17 matches against the Crusaders.

The boot of opposite number Tyler Bleyendaal was less precise, even though the youngster had kicked superbly out of hand in the first half. The 22-year-old stand-in for Dan Carter missed a potential five points in the first half and another six in the second, while he was no longer the master of the territorial game either. Even wing JP Pietersen was more effective with the boot after the break.

The scoreboard was still in the Crusaders’ favour, however, heading into the final 10 minutes at 17-15. It was the Sharks scrum, which was uncertain in the first half, which turned the contest as a tremendous shove earned Lambie a penalty to give the home side an 18-17 lead.

The clincher came with four minutes remaining and was due to an inconsequential ruck infringement by the Crusaders on their own ball.

But the Sharks were deserving winners, keeping the ball for longer in the second half, and their forwards producing a superb effort spearheaded by Tendai “Beast” Mtawarira and the highly impressive young lock, Pieter-Steph du Toit.

Burton Francis kicked an angled penalty after the hooter to also steal the plaudits in the Cheetahs’ 26-24 win over the Stormers.

Having earned a reputation in previous seasons for always losing the close games, the Cheetahs showed remarkable composure and belief to end a six-year losing streak against the Stormers and to avenge two narrow defeats against them last year. It was also their fifth successive win, to mark their best ever run in SuperRugby.

Replacement wing Damian de Allende’s failure to remove his hands from a ruck as the Stormers tried to repel wave-after-wave of desperate last attack by the Cheetahs led to the penalty, which was contentious. But it was fair that the last piece of fortune should fall the Cheetahs’ way because referee Stuart Berry had earlier seen fit to award the Stormers a try despite accidental offsides in the build-up and a crucial 71^st-minute ruck penalty when Heinrich Brüssow looked hard done by and which infuriated the hosts.

The crowning of Francis as hero only came after a shaky last 10 minutes when he had missed a relatively straightforward penalty and a drop goal (having slotted a brilliant one on the hour mark) and had kicked the ball dead to concede a scrum in the final minute, inside the Cheetahs’ half.

But the massive scrum that followed, earning the Cheetahs a tighthead, was the obvious match-winning moment, allowing the home side to launch those last forays that earned Francis his shot at glory.

The play of the Stormers was inconsistent, ranging from the sublime to the lethargic and the number of errors they made meant the Cheetahs were always in the game.

Having competed so well in the opening exchanges, the Cheetahs were in a state of some shock at half-time as the Stormers scored two tries in the last five minutes of the first half to open up a 15-7 lead.

The second try should never have been, though, as Gio Aplon, having re-gathered his own chip over the defence, then grubbered into one of his own players standing in front of him, which should have been called for offsides. It was during a typically helter-skelter, scrappy period of play, but the information would have been readily available to referee Berry had he referred it, like so many other decisions, to the TMO. Then again, perhaps the Cheetahs players should have put up more of a fuss.

But the Cheetahs struck early in the second half, Elton Jantjies being penalised for a judo-throw tackle and replacement scrumhalf Sarel Pretorius then snapping up an attempted box-kick practically off opposite number Nic Groom’s boot and racing away from 45m for a superb try.

It came at a cost, though, as Pretorius strained his hamstring during his sprint, forcing replacement wing Ryno Benjamin to play scrumhalf. Fortunately he fitted the bill as he has played there before for the Springbok Sevens team, and it characterised the Cheetahs’ determination to succeed whatever the obstacles, which included a dysfunctional lineout.

The Stormers are not the only bemused pre-tournament favourites at the moment, though, with the Brumbies wondering how on earth they couldn’t beat the Kings in Canberra.

The answers lie in how magnificently the Kings defended, but also in how the Brumbies chose to attack the tournament newcomers.

Having started brightly, using their big strike runners to narrow the defence and then going wide as they built an early 13-0 lead, the Brumbies declined to use the width of the field in the second half.

It played into the hands of the phenomenal Kings defence at close quarters, with flank Wimpie van der Walt leading the way with an extraordinary 19 tackles, missing none, to win the man of the match award for one of the most ferocious displays seen this season.

It was Van der Walt and excellent fellow loose forward Cornell du Preez who had carried the ball strongly to allow prop Schalk Ferreira the momentum to score the Kings’ opening try in the 22^nd minute.

The Kings lost a couple of lineouts and hardly ever retained possession from the kick-offs to make life even harder for themselves, but Van der Walt scored from a brilliant rolling maul to keep the gap to just 14-19 at half-time.

For whatever reason, Jake White’s Brumbies have been unable to give of their best for two weekends now and their lack of focus saw the Kings claim the lead just six minutes into the second half as a dropped pass allowed Sergeal Petersen to hack the ball away and give chase. The visitors won the turnover, scrumhalf Nicolas Vergallo holding the ball up well before providing Du Preez with the scoring pass.

It was clear the Brumbies were now in danger of a shock defeat, even though the Kings’ lead only lasted four minutes as Vergallo’s clearance from the kick-off was charged down, leading to a penalty.

But it was the Kings, learning about rugby at this level with prodigious speed, who had all the answers in the closing minutes. Even a harsh yellow card to Ferreira, which contributed to two Brumbies’ scrum penalties, and a missed penalty in front of the poles by George Whitehead failed to derail them and the final minute saw them hard on attack.

The Brumbies conceded a string of penalties as the clock ticked down, and the hooter had long gone when the admirable Bandise Maku made good ground after tapping the penalty and the tenacious Du Preez muscled his way through the tackles of four Australians to clinch the most heroic of draws.

 http://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2013-04-08-superrugby-wrap-sharks-cheetahs-kings-against-all-odds/#.VOHZq_mUde8

Only 90 minutes of action for a decent-sized crowd was possible at Willowmoore Park in Benoni on Sunday as the Momentum One-Day Cup match between the Unlimited Titans and the Chevrolet Knights was abandoned due to a dangerous pitch.

The Titans had lost the toss and been sent in to bat and they had struggled to 45 for three in 19 overs when umpires Dennis Smith and Gerrie Pienaar, in consultation with match referee Barry Lambson, called the game off.

“The match has been called off in consultation with me because the umpires feel the pitch is too dangerous. They have to consider the safety of the players and several batsmen were hit on the hand, quite a few deliveries jumped off the pitch and at times balls kept low as well. It was getting more uneven,” Lambson said.

The Titans batsmen to be dismissed were Heino Kuhn (5), Henry Davids (25) and Theunis de Bruyn (8), and they all had to contend with deliveries rearing up off a good length, taking blows to the hands practically every over.

Lambson will now submit a report, including photographs and a pitch sample, to Cricket South Africa, who will decide what further action to take.

The Titans, who lost their first two matches in the One-Day Cup, will be hoping points are not deducted from them as the host franchise.

“It’s not as if we requested the pitch and we’re as badly impacted as the opposition, so if points are deducted I don’t think that will be fair. We had nothing to do with it,” Titans coach Rob Walter said.

“It’s sad for cricket and the brand because it’s hard enough to get people into the grounds. It’s the last thing they need and it’s very sad. I can understand if they don’t want to come back next time.”

The strange thing about the pitch debacle is that the strip for Sunday’s game was the one next to the track used for the four-day game against the Warriors, on which batsmen had their fill, Roelof van der Merwe scoring an unbeaten double century.

“I’m not sure what to think because the four-day wicket was a ripper and in just 10 days this has happened, which I don’t quite understand because I know groundsman Brendon Frost works bloody hard,” Walter said.

De Bruyn’s dismissal in the 17^th over, gloving a catch behind to wicketkeeper Rudi Second off Dillon du Preez was indicative of the problems with the pitch. The previous delivery had only bounced ankle high and the wicket-taking ball, pitching in the same spot, reared up viciously and almost hit the batsman in the head.

The prospect of Marchant de Lange bowling at more than 140km/h on the pitch was the deciding factor for the umpires.

“Marchant is a lot quicker than the bowlers used by the Knights and nobody would like to face him on this pitch,” Lambson said.