Ken Borland

The GWK Griquas charged to the top of the Vodacom Cup North Section standings as the Leopards criminally wasted a 27-12 halftime lead to lose 42-40 at Profert Olen Park in Potchefstroom on Saturday.

The towering presence of lock Ligtoring Landman loomed with great authority over the Leopards as he scored two tries including the 75th-minute effort that won the match for Griquas.

He also scored in the 32nd minute to bring Griquas back into the game after they had trailed 5-20 thanks to two early tries by the Leopards.

The home side had dominated the opening exchanges and could have led 6-0 after as many minutes but flyhalf Andre Pretorius missed two penalties. He made up for it though as he succeeded with his next seven shots at goal, as well as slotting a drop goal.

The former Springbok had a chance to snatch the spoils for the Leopards at the death, but he was wide with his 77th-minute drop goal attempt.

A seventh-minute penalty by Pretorius was followed by a try by fullback Hoffman Maritz and the conversion and a drop goal by the flyhalf as the Leopards raced into a 13-0 lead after 15 minutes.

But the home crowd knew Griquas, with top spot on the log up for grabs and coming off a defeat last weekend, would come back firing and flank Marnus Schoeman, who was never far from the ball, scored their opening try in the 18th minute.

Eighthman Henro Swart scored for the Leopards six minutes later and Pretorius converted to stretch the lead to 20-5.

Landman then scored his first try and Leopards wing Berty Visser replied and the home side went into the break 27-12 to the good.

But the second half brought a fierce comeback by Griquas. Outside centre Jean Stemmet’s elusive run led to a try two minutes after the break and his midfield partner PJ Vermeulen then scored three minutes later.

Pretorius stepped up to kick a 48th-minute penalty that stretched the Leopards’ lead to six points (30-24).

Griqualand West fullback Rudi Vogt kicked a 56th-minute penalty to make it 27-30, and astute flanker Jonathan Adendorf finally gave the visitors the lead with a try five minutes later.

The vastly-experienced Pretorius knows what pressure kicking is all about and he slotted a 65th-minute penalty to put the Leopards back in front 33-32, but they messed up from the kick-off and conceded a penalty to Vogt almost immediately.

But the Leopards were able to regain possession from the kick-off and they engineered a try to inside centre Adriaan Engelbrecht, which Pretorius converted.

But Griquas had the last say and the five log points they so desperately wanted as Landman dotted down to give them a two-point lead over the Pumas atop the North Section.

The Leopards picked up two bonus points to keep their hopes of making the quarterfinals alive, although they will have to win next weekend and hope the Lions and/or Bulls lose.

SCORERS:

Leopards – Tries: Hoffman Maritz, Henro Swart, Berty Visser, Adriaan Engelbrecht. Conversions: Andre Pretorius (4). Penalties: Pretorius (3). Drop goal: Pretorius.

GWK Griquas – Tries: Marnus Schoeman, Ligtoring Landman (2), Jean Stemmet, PJ Vermeulen, Jonathan Adendorf. Conversions: Rudi Vogt (3). Penalties: Vogt (2).

http://www.supersport.com/rugby/vodacom-cup/news/120421/Griquas_snatch_victory

The Ford Pumas stymied the MTN Golden Lions’ top-of-the-log ambitions and kept their own Vodacom Cup hopes alive as they beat their hosts 37-33 (half-time 17-20) at CocaCola Park in Johannesburg on Saturday.

The Lions often looked the better team and seemed to be pulling away from the visitors when their second try gave them a 20-10 lead with just three minutes of the first half remaining. But the Lions must have really resented the plucky Pumas’ ability to bounce back and the men from Mpumalanga were quick to strike after kick-offs in particular.

The opening 10 minutes saw the Pumas and Lions score tit-for-tat tries with flank Jaco Bouwer scoring for the visitors after a fantastic rolling maul and lock Hendrik Roodt charging over for the Gautengers after a fine take at the back of the lineout by eighthman JJ Gagiano.

The tightly-contested tiff also featured excellent goal-kicking by Pumas fullback Coenie van Wyk, who succeeded with all seven of his shots at goal, and Lions flyhalf Guy Cronje, whose only miss from eight attempts came off the post and led to a Pumas try!

In the 14th minute, a powerful charge by flank Stephan de Wit put the Lions on the front foot, leading to a penalty by Cronje (10-7). A high tackle on the impressive De Wit five minutes later led to another Cronje penalty (13-7) and the Pumas, who had scored their seven points in the first five minutes, were finally back on the scoreboard with eight minutes left in the first half when the excellent direct running and support play of their forwards earned Van Wyk his first penalty (13-10).

The Lions were quick to put the Pumas back under pressure, however, their good ball-retention eventually leading to the defence cracking as fullback Garth April joined the line and centre Bradley Moolman was able to go over in the left corner. Cronje’s good day with the boot was highlighted by his conversion from the touchline (20-10).

But the Lions spent the halftime break mourning a costly lapse in concentration as they failed to gather the kick-off, Pumas wing Deon Scholtz grabbing the ball and scooting over for a crucial try just befpre the interval (20-17).

Having battled gamely in their bright pink strips in the first half, the Pumas switched to grey in the second half and they were a new side. Ever quick to pounce on an opportunity, they took the lead four minutes after the break when a Cronje penalty attempt came back off the post and centre Tiaan Marx’s pace caught the Lions unawares. The former Leopards and KZN representative sprinted all the way into the Lions’ 22, Scholtz was stopped just short of the line, but the home side could not keep hooker Torsten van Jaarsveld from crashing over.

But after a strong run by Moolman, Pumas scrumhalf Shaun Venter did not show the necessary restraint at the ruck and Cronje’s penalty closed the gap to just one point (23-24).

The Lions clawed their way back into the lead in the 55th minute courtesy of another Cronje penalty (26-24), but the Pumas pounced again, counter-attacking off an up-and-under and earning Van Wyk another penalty (27-26).

With 13 minutes remaining, and with options both left and right from a midfield scrum in Lions’ territory, lock Rudi Matthee, always strong with ball in hand, made impressive ground before Bouwer reached over the ruck to score.

Van Wyk’s conversion gave the Pumas a healthy 34-26 lead, but the visitors were soon singing a different tune as the Lions came swarming back on to attack.

Some out-of-sorts basics by the Pumas put them under pressure and wing Ruan Combrinck finned his way down the right touchline for a top-class try. Cronje’s conversion was a formality and it was a one-point game (33-34) heading into the last 10 minutes.

But the Pumas once again showed that remarkable ability to strike back from the kick-off as they roared back into the Lions’ 22 and Van Wyk kicked a penalty that was enough of a buffer.

Some admirable defence in the last five minutes ensured that the Pumas’ victory was just that little bit more memorable.

Scorers

MTN Golden Lions – Tries: Hendrik Roodt, Bradley Moolman, Ruan Combrinck. Conversions: Guy Cronje (3). Penalties: Cronje (4).

Ford Pumas – Tries: Jaco Bouwer (2), Deon Scholtz, Torsten van Jaarsveld. Conversions: Coenie van Wyk (4). Penalties: Van Wyk (3).

The MTN Golden Lions ran powerfully with the ball as they charged to a 71-25 (half-time 24-6) victory over the Griffons in their Vodacom Cup match at Coca-Cola Park in Johannesburg on Saturday.

The Griffons were outmatched up front and poor defensively, allowing a lively Lions backline to cut them apart, and the Northern Free Staters eventually conceded 11 tries.

The visitors started well enough, with flyhalf Reinard Erwee kicking a fourth-minute penalty to convert promising territory into points.

But the tightness of the Lions’ defence was such that the Griffons had to work hard for their points, while the sharpness of the Lions’ young midfield – flyhalf Marais Schmidt and centres Robert de Bruyn and BJ Moolman – meant the scoreboard became very ugly for the Northern Free Staters.

The Lions backs called the tune early on as Schmidt’s inside pass to De Bruyn led to the opening try and wing Anthony Volmink fed fullback Ruan Combrinck for the second try in the 13th minute.

Outside centre Moolman had a top-class game and scored two tries, although the grounding for his first five-pointer looked rather fishy after he had powered down the left-hand side and dotted down with just a finger’s worth of downward pressure in opposite number Werner Griesel’s tackle.

The Griffons were trailing 17-3 but seemed to be making a strong finish to the half as Erwee kicked another penalty and fantastic runs by fullback Virgil Russel and left wing Shane Hancke were both stopped a metre from the tryline.

The Lions’ clearance after the hooter went back to Hancke and he counter-attacked, but the Griffons lost the ball forward. The Lions then spread the ball wide and Moolman went sprinting over for the try from 55 metres out after throwing an outrageous dummy to befuddle the Northern Free State defence.

Schmidt added his second conversion of the half to give the Lions a 24-6 half-time lead and they put the Griffons to the sword after the break.

Lock Paul Willemse charged over from a ruck to open the second-half scoring, before burly centre Japie Nel dived over to give the Griffons some cheer.

Tighthead prop Ruan Dreyer, who had also given the Griffons a tough time in the scrums, burst from a ruck to score in the 52nd minute, Schmidt’s fourth conversion taking the score to 38-11, but the Griffons were still fighting, their efforts bringing a second try – replacement scrumhalf Tertius Carse breaking clear from a ruck, feeding prop Kewan Voysey, whose running and handling skills gave Russel the time and space to score.

Replacement flank Etienne Oosthuizen then scored for the Lions from his first touch of the ball, before Volmink scored a great try from the kick-off as he weaved his way out and in from the halfway line.

Volmink became the second Lions player to score two tries in the match with his intercept effort in the 76th minute, before the Griffons’ flanks, Willie Britz and Martin Sithole, combined superbly for a try to the latter.

Lions’ replacement wing JR Esterhuizen had been watching most of the match from the sideline, but took out his frustration in the last two minutes with two dazzling tries.

The final two points of the match came via the boot of replacement flyhalf Guy Cronje, as the Lions emphatically demonstrated the gap between the resources of the big unions and the minnows.

The bonus-point victory lifts the Lions to within touching distance of the North Section leaders, while it increases the misery of the Griffons, who have lost all three of their matches by wide margins.

SCORERS

MTN Golden Lions – Tries: Robert de Bruyn, Ruan Combrinck, BJ Moolman (2), Paul Willemse, Ruan Dreyer, Etienne Oosthuizen, Anthony Volmink (2), JR Esterhuizen (2). Conversions: Marais Schmidt (6), Guy Cronje (2).

Griffons – Tries: Japie Nel, Virgil Russel, Martin van Wyk. Conversions: Tiaan van Wyk (2). Penalties: Reinard Erwee (2).

http://www.supersport.com/rugby/vodacom-cup/news/120331/Lions_charge_to_victory_over_Griffons

The Blue Bulls were clinical in attack and rock-solid in defence as they hammered the MTN Golden Lions 49-10 (half-time 18-3) in their Vodacom Cup match at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria on Saturday.

The Bulls ran in six tries and they conceded just one as they thoroughly outplayed a Lions side that enjoyed enough possession, but could not make headway against a flat, imposing wall of defence. The Lions also tended to waste their ball with silly handling errors or poor option taking and a lack of flair.

The Lions actually opened the scoring with a seventh-minute penalty by fullback Marais Schmidt, but they had to wait another 52 minutes for their next shot at goal, when Schmidt kicked the conversion of their only try, by wing Anthony Volmink. That came about after the Lions finally got their scrum going and worked the blindside.

By then, however, the Bulls had already scored their bonus point try and the consolation effort allowed the Lions to close the gap to 35-10.

The Bulls enjoyed a healthy 18-3 lead at halftime, thanks to two penalties by flyhalf Tony Jantjies, whose boot kept the home side going forward. The younger brother of Lions star Elton succeeded with five conversions and three penalties in all, as well as scoring an impressive individual try for a haul of 24 points.

Lions loosehead prop Fhumulani Kamanga struggled to get himself settled at the scrum and the result was a series of penalties to the Bulls. One of these, in the 19th minute, was kicked to touch and, from the lineout, Jantjies put in a good straight run to get over the advantage line, allowing scrumhalf Ruan Snyman to pick the ball up at the ruck and swivel through a couple of tackles and score.

The Bulls’ second try came in the 21st minute from another scrum penalty deep inside the Lions’ 22. From the tap penalty, Jantjies charged straight through the flimsy defence of opposite number Garth April to score.

The Lions tried hard to breach the Bulls defence up to the end of the first half, enjoying 68% possession in the first 40 minutes, but their efforts invariably came to nought, ending in a dropped pass or a turnover.

It meant the Lions finished the first half 15 points behind and the second half just saw a repeat of their first-half mistakes.

Another scrum penalty six minutes after the break allowed the Bulls to set up a midfield ruck, fullback Ulrich Beyers popped up in the backline and wing Jurgen Visser was looming on the wing and able to canter over the tryline.

Jantjies kicked the conversion and a penalty in the 54th minute as the Bulls extended their lead to 28-3 and sealed the result.

From the kickoff, Snyman hoisted an up-and-under and Visser appeared out of nowhere to snatch the ball from Schmidt, and Beyers was up in support to take an inside pass and score under the poles (35-3).

The Lions did bounce back with Volmink’s lone try, but the Bulls were quickly back on to the attack.

At a venue where tight play is so admired, it was fitting that the Bulls’ last two tries were scored by loosehead prop Vincent Koch and replacement tighthead Basil Short.

It was at forward where the Bulls had laid the platform for their triumph and the whole pack were brilliant, working as the most well-knit of units.

The Bulls backline was solid in defence and efficient on attack: Jantjies has clearly inherited the genes of his brother, while the midfield pairing of Francois Venter and Jan Serfontein is one of the most promising in the country.

SCORERS:

Vodacom Blue Bulls – Tries: Ruan Snyman, Tony Jantjies, Jurgen Visser, Ulrich Beyers, Vincent Koch, Basil Short. Conversions: Jantjies (5). Penalties: Jantjies (3).

MTN Golden Lions – Try: Anthony Volmink. Conversion: Marais Schmidt. Penalty: Schmidt.

http://www.supersport.com/rugby/vodacom-cup/news/120324/Clinical_Bulls_hammer_Lions