Top teams shine at Coca-Cola Grant Khomo and Academy Weeks
KwaZulu-Natal, the Golden Lions and the Limpopo Blue Bulls on Tuesday established themselves as the top teams at the Under-16 Coca-Cola Grant Khomo Week at the Bridgton Sports Grounds in Oudtshoorn as they registered their second round of victories in as many days.
Griquas and Border, meanwhile, played to a 31-31 draw in an epic clash to remain unbeaten in the tournament.
The second day’s play was exciting as a few teams registered convincing victories, while others were involved in hard-fought battles, which kept the passionate home crowd interested throughout the day.
In the main games KwaZulu-Natal defied the odds with a man down for most of the second half to defeat Western Province 19-17, while the Golden Lions thumped Boland 34-3 in a one-sided encounter and the Limpopo Blue Bulls defeated the Leopards 38-19.
Meanwhile, at the Coca-Cola Academy Week in Vanderbijlpark, Western Province, the Blue Bulls, KwaZulu-Natal CD, the Griffons and Griquas CD also secured back-to-back victories.
Western Province were in fantastic form and cruised to a 53 – 17 win against Eastern Province and the Blue Bulls defeated Free State 34-31 in the main games of the day, while KwaZulu-Natal CD pipped the Griquas, the Griffons beat Border, and Griquas CD thumped the Leopards.
Namibia and SWD also remained unbeaten as Namibia played to a 21-21 draw against Pumas CD, while SWD defeated the Pumas 40-33.
The players will have Wednesday off to recover after two days of physical rugby, with the final round of matches at both tournaments being played on Thursday.
Western Province 17 (7) KwaZulu-Natal 19 (0)
The first half between Western Province and KwaZulu-Natal was a tight affair as the teams were closely matched on attack and defence. The Cape side did well to retain possession and tried to spread the ball wide, but the KwaZulu-Natal defence was effective at countering most of their efforts. Western Province, however, managed to force their way through the defence shortly before half time, which handed the side a 7-0 lead at the break.
This bolstered the Cape side’s confidence as they came out firing in the second half and managed to cross the tryline for the second time after spreading the defence wide for a 12-0 lead. KwaZulu-Natal were dealt a heavy blow two minutes later as they were reduced to 14 men for tackling a player in the air. Western Province took advantage of this and touched down for their fourth try in the 36th minute. KwaZulu-Natal, however, refused to give up and scored two tries compliments of Dylan Richardson and Dylan Kruger to close in on Western Province at 17-12. They added another thanks to a strong forward performance and fantastic patience on attack, which pushed them 19-17 ahead with six minutes left on the clock. To their delight they held on for a surprise victory.
Scorers:
Western Province – Tries: Divan Enslin, Ian Kitwanga (2). Conversion: Durin Nasson.
KwaZulu Natal – Tries: Kasongo Ilunga, Dylan Richardson, Dylan Kruger. Conversions: Morne van Rensburg (2).
Namibia 27 (10) Griffons 17 (17)
The Griffons showed their attacking prowess early on against Namibia with Darren Hull scoring two tries in the first 15 minutes following an early penalty kick by Namibia. But the visitors hit back with back-to-back tries before half time to trail 17-10 at the break.
A second penalty for Namibia allowed them to close in on the Griffons on the scoreboard, while each team managed to score a second try in the second half. However, Namibia’s superior goal-kicking in which they converted all three of their tries and two penalties handed them a comfortable 27-17 lead on the scoreboard.
Scorers:
Namibia – Tries: Warren Ludwig, Lorenzo Groenewald, Wynand Breytenbach. Conversions: Denzo Bruwer (2), Delron Brandt. Penalties: Denzo Bruwer (2).
Griffons – Tries: Darren Hull (3). Conversion: Andrew Kota.
Golden Lions 34 (22) Boland 3 (0)
The Golden Lions delivered another solid performance in the tournament, this time against Boland, as they used their strong forwards and exciting backs to dominate the first half. They had the upper hand in terms of possession and territory and the rewards followed. The Johannesburg team found space out wide on the left wing to touch down for their first try minutes into the half and they built on this with another two tries in the following exchanges to work their way into an encouraging 15-0 lead. They continued to apply pressure on attack, which earned them their fourth try thanks to a clever dummy pass by scrumhalf Tinus Combrinck, which paved the way for him to dive over the tryline for a 22-0 halftime lead.
Boland tightened up their defence after the break, but nevertheless the Lions were able to break through for two more tries to extend their lead to 34-0. With time running out fast for Boland to break their points drought, they settled for a penalty on the stroke of fulltime for a 34-3 defeat.
Scorers:
Golden Lions – Tries: Ignis Meyer, Mark Snyman, Damean Venter, Travis Gordon, Tinus Gordon, Tinus Combrinck, David Cary. Conversions: Kennedy Mpeku (2).
Boland – Penalty: Lloyd April.
Eastern Province 35 (14) Falcons 17 (7)
The first half between Eastern Province and the Valke was exciting as the teams tried hard to make their presence felt. Eastern Province, however, had the first say with two tries in the first 17 minutes, which they converted to take a 14-0 lead. The Valke hit back five minutes later with a converted try of their own to reduce the deficit to 14-7, which they held onto for the rest of the half.
The Valke came out strongly in the second half as they burst through for their second try, but this was cancelled out by Eastern Province as they added another minutes later. The Valke again hit back, but two tries by Eastern Province in the last four minutes pushed them into a convincing lead to finish the match.
Scorers:
Eastern Province – Tries: Elandre Smit, Chrispian Jaggers, Le-Kleu Stokes, Ayabonga Matroos, Waqar Solaan. Conversions: Vaughn Isaacs (5).
Falcons – Tries: Ruben Beytell, Quan Eymann, Lee-Irwin Andries. Conversions: Ruben Beytell.
Free State 38 (19) Pumas 10 (5)
The Free State wasted no time making their presence felt against the Pumas as Janco van Heyningen dashed through to the tryline twice in the first 11 minutes to stamp their authority early on. Both sides tried to use their forwards to work their way onto the front foot, but they balanced this with a solid effort by their backs. Despite a few closely contested stages during the half, the Free State made better use of their opportunities, which earned them three tries to only one by the Pumas for a 19-5 lead at the break.
The Free State continued to capitalise on their point-scoring chances after the break and managed to extend their lead to 38 thanks to another three tries. The Pumas, meanwhile, showed their fighting spirit and tried desperately to force their way back into the match. Their efforts finally paid off with a good try seven minutes before the final whistle after finding space out wide, but unfortunately the gap on the scoreboard was too wide for them to get back into the game, forcing them to settle for a 38-10 defeat.
Scorers:
Free State – Tries: Christopher Schreuder, Wyclef Vlitoor, Marcel Theunissen, Dwayne Arendse, Janco vsn Heyningen (2). Conversions: Christopher Schreuder (4).
Pumas – Tries: Carlo Nortje, Uys du Preez.
Blue Bulls 39 (15) SWD Eagles 10 (3)
The Blue Bulls were completely dominant against hosts, the SWD Eagles, as their effective attack and defence came together well to hand them an edge throughout the match. Johan van Zyl crossed the tryline for the Bulls in the fifth minute to signal their intentions early on, and he added another five-pointer in the 14th minute. Such was the high quality of their attack they earned their third try by the 18th minute, while the SWD Eagles only managed a penalty in the first half. This left the hosts 15-3 behind at the break.
They continued their fine form in the second half to cruise to another four tries, while SWD only managed to break through their defence once, which resulted in the Blue Bulls securing an emphatic 39-10 victory.
Scorers:
Blue Bulls – Tries: Charles Goedhals, Stephane Ndjaya, Ruben Veldsman, Ahen Smith, Divhan du Preez, Johan van Zyl (2). Conversions: Charles Goedhals, Michael Pretorius.
SWD Eagles – Try: Jay-Cee Nel. Conversion: Darryn Fortuin. Penalty: James-Henry Mollentze.
Limpopo Blue Bulls 38 (17) Leopards 19 (0)
The Limpopo Blue Bulls used their effective running rugby to outplay the Leopards 38-19. The Limpopo side did well to stretch the defence and find the gaps out wide and they earned the rewards with a 17-0 halftime lead thanks to two tries and a penalty.
The Leopards tried hard to work their way back into the match after the break by putting together phases on attack and this paid off with three tries in the third quarter. Two quick tries early in the second half by the Limpopo Blue Bulls and another on the stroke of fulltime, however, stretched their lead to 38 on the scoreboard, which put the match beyond reach for the Leopards.
Scorers:
Limpopo Blue Bulls – Tries: Pieter Croukamp, Muzi Nyakane, Carl du Plessis, Nyiko Ntlemo (2). Conversions: Karel Limbach (4), Jonathan Viljoen. Penalty: Karel Limbach.
Leopards – Tries: Damon Ivens, Zimosa Mokama, Graivian Smith. Conversions: Loanne Jans (2).
Zimbabwe 36 (15) Border CD 3 (3)
Zimbabwe were in good form against Border CD as they cruised to three first-half tries, while Border CD were only able to score a penalty, leaving them trailing 15-3 at the break.
Zimbabwe continued to deliver a solid effort on attack and defence after the break and added another three tries to take their total for the match to six, which earned them a rewarding 36-3 victory.
Scorers:
Zimbabwe – Tries: Chipo Mupeso, Jack Charsley, Desmond Annandale, Tafadziswa Bunu, Munashe Kamera (2). Conversions: Martin Eeson (3).
Border CD – Penalty: Martin Lottering.
Border 31 (12) Griquas 31 (17)
The clash between Border and Griquas was a physical forward battle as the teams used their powerful forwards to make their presence felt. Border, in particular, tried to flex their muscles with their rolling mauls. Griquas, however, made better use of their point-scoring chances as they scored four tries to two for a 17-12 halftime lead.
Border took control early in the second half as they retained possession for long periods and applied pressure on Griquas up front and with their backs, which allowed them to camp in the Kimberley side’s half. These efforts enabled them to add two tries to their score for 24 points. Griquas, however, hit back with a stunning long-distance try, which they converted to level the scores at 24-24 with minutes left on the clock. Griquas crossed the line again before the final whistle after stringing together several phases, which pushed them 31-24 ahead. But this lead was cancelled out by a try under the posts by Border, which they converted for a 31-31 final score.
Scorers:
Border – Tries: David Coetzer (3), Nicholas Njumba, Sibahle. Conversions: David Coetzer (3).
Griquas – Tries: Charles Williams (3), Dehan du Plessis, Nelson Aparcia. Conversions: Charles Williams (3).
SWD Eagles XV 5 (5) Griquas CD 29 (12)
The first half between the SWD Eagles XV and Griquas CD was tight as the teams threw everything at one another on attack. Griquas CD opened up the scoring in the third minute, but the rest of the half was close as each team added only one more try, which handed Griquas CD a 12-5 lead.
The Kimberley side added back-to-back tries in three minutes in the second half to stretch their score, while they denied the SWD Eagles XV from adding any points to their score, for their 29-5 victory.
Scorers:
SWD Eagles XV – Try: Warzaineon Barends.
Griquas CD – Tries: Sebastiaan Job, Delron Speelman, Petrus Duvenhage, Erik Kies. Conversions: Iwan Lombard.
U16 Coca-Cola Grant Khomo Week day-two results:
DHL Western Province 17 – 19 KwaZulu-Natal
Namibia 27 – 17 Griffons
Golden Lions 34 – 3 Boland
Eastern Province 25 – 17 Falcons
Free State 38 – 10 Pumas
Blue Bulls 39 – 10 SWD Eagles
Limpopo Blue Bulls 38 – 19 Leopards
Zimbabwe 36 – 3 Border CD
Border 31 – 31 Griquas
SWD Eagles XV 5 – 29 Griquas CD
Coca-Cola Academy Week day-two results:
Free State 31 – 34 Blue Bulls
KwaZulu-Natal CD 28 – 25 Griquas
Western Province 53 – 17 Eastern Province
Leopards 19 – 30 Griquas CD
SWD 40 – 33 Pumas
Pumas CD 21 – 21 Namibia
Lions 37 – 18 Boland
Limpopo Blue Bulls 24 – 20 Blouvalke
KwaZulu-Natal 49 – 19 Rooi Valke
EP CD 40 – 12 Border CD
Border 19 – 27 Griffons
Griffons CD 53 – 12 SA LSEN
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