Roodepoort and Rustenburg Impala to contest Cell C Community Cup final
April 20, 2014
Roodepoort and Rustenburg Impala will battle it out for the historic Gold Cup in the Cell C Community Cup final on Monday after registering well-deserved victories in their respective semifinals on Saturday.
Roodepoort booked their place in the final following a tense showdown against tournament debutantes Hamiltons for their 20-18 victory, while Rustenburg Impala outplayed 2013 runners up Jonsson College Rovers 32-13.
In the early matches on Saturday, Roses United held on for a 39-31 victory against Kempston Old Selbornians, while defending champions GAP Management Despatch shut out Refreshhh! Centurion for a 23-21 victory.
In the SWD Easter tournament hosted on the Outeniqua Park B field, Knysna Utd defeated Eagles Stars 28-11, Jaguars thumped Glen Roses 49-0, the Maori’s beat the All Blacks 24-13 and Calitzdorp went down 29-15 to Bridgton.
Roses United 39 (36) Kempston Old Selbornians 31 (17)
A strong first half showing by Boland club, Roses United, allowed them to bounce back from their defeat on the opening day of the Cell C Community Cup. The team started the clash with a bang thanks to a few fantastic line breaks and good support play, which earned them three tries in the first nine minutes. They continued their dominance as the half progressed and were awarded a penalty try soon after, while hooker Kelvin Fikster scored his second try of the day in the 26th minute for a 31-3 lead.
Kempston Old Selbornians, however, stepped up their game and did well to string together phases, which paved the way for them to force their way back into the match. This despite replacement forward Duran Alberts receiving a red card for a dangerous tackle. Kempston Old Selbornians flyhalf Curtis Kleinhans was the first player to cross the tryline for his team in the 30th minute and centre Jack van Coller followed soon after. Roses United, however, hit back on the stroke of half time with their fifth try to enter the break with 36-17 lead.
The second half, however, was dominated by Kempston Old Selbornians, who added two more tries to their tally thanks to their improved attack and solid defence. This allowed them to come within striking range of winning the match in the dying minutes as they trailed 36-31. But a last-minute penalty by Roses United sealed the victory for the Boland side.
Roses United – Tries: Penalty Try, Brendon April, Kelvin Fikster (2), Reinart Hubert Ellmann, Thurlow Marsh. Conversions: Ryan Julies (3). Penalties: Ryan Julies.
Kempston Old Selbornians – Tries: Curtis Kleinhans (2), Jack van Coller, Marc Hammond. Conversions: Craig Shone (4). Penalties: Curtis Kleinhans.
GAP Management Despatch 23 (15) Refreshhh! Centurion 21 (0)
Similarly to Roses United, an impressive start to the match set up defending Cell C Community Cup champions GAP Management Despatch for their first victory of the tournament against Refreshhh! Centurion.
The Port Elizabeth side used their possession well and applied pressure on Refreshhh! Centurion, and the rewards followed with two first-half tries by lock Trichardt van Tonder and hooker Bobby Dyer to add to a penalty by flyhalf Monty Dumond for an encouraging 15-0 lead.
The Pretoria side, however, bounced back strongly after the break and had the first say with lock Yves Bashiya crossing the tryline for their first points of the match. A few tight exchanges followed, but Refreshhh! Centurion again penetrated the defence in the 67th minute to trail 18-14.
GAP Management Despatch replacement back Elcardo Mintoor managed to alleviate some of the pressure on his team with 11 minutes to go as he touched down for their third try. But the Pretoria side refused to give up and found space on the left side of the field to set up fullback Christiaan Burger for a third try with five minutes left on the clock. They then had a golden opportunity to snatch a victory with a penalty in the dying minutes, but flyhalf Steven Moir, who converted all three tries, was unsuccessful in his goal kick, which denied the team a victory.
GAP Management Despatch – Tries: Bobby Dyer, Elcardo Mintoor, Trichardt van Tonder. Conversions: Monty Dumond. Penalties: Monty Dumond (2).
Refreshhh! Centurion – Tries: Christiaan Burger, Paul Jacobs, Yves Bashiya. Conversions: Steven Moir (3).
Rustenburg Impala 32 (19) Jonsson College Rovers 13 (6)
Rustenburg Impala booked their place in the Cell C Community Cup final in style as they delivered a fine all-round performance against 2013 finalists Jonsson College Rovers for a convincing 32-13 victory. The team took control of the match with their strong attack and supported this with a solid defensive effort and a good showing in the set pieces.
Such was the high quality of Rustenburg Impala’s attack they crossed the tryline three times in the first half thanks to the solid platform laid by their forwards, while Jonsson College Rovers had only two penalties to show for their efforts. This handed Rustenburg Impala a handy 19-6 half-time lead.
A drop goal by Willem Kok and penalty by Wilco de Wet inflated their lead to 25-6 in the third quarter, but Jonsson College Rovers hit back soon after with their only try of the match by centre Quinton Crocker.
They continued to fight their way back, but were shut out by Rustenburg Impala’s resilient defence. Despite having the victory wrapped up, the Leopards club played until the final whistle, which saw Earl Lewis cross the tryline in the final minute to push the score to 32-13.
Rustenburg Impala – Tries: Earl Cassidy Lewis, Naas Olivier, Michael Nienaber (2). Conversions: Naas Olivier (2), Wilco de Wet. Penalty: Wilco de Wet. Drop goal: Willem Kok.
Jonsson College Rovers – Try: Quinton Crocker. Conversion: Jors Dannhauser. Penalties: Jors Dannhauser (2).
Hamiltons 18 (9) Roodepoort 20 (13)
An unsuccessful penalty attempt by Hamiltons in the dying seconds of their semifinal against Roodepoort allowed the Johannesburg club to book their place in the Cell C Community Cup final.
Roodepoort, however, were the better team on the day as they produced a solid effort on attack and defence, while they converted a few vital point-scoring chances. They supported this with a solid performance up-front and at the rucks, where they committed numbers on attack and contested well on defence.
In stark contrast Hamiltons relied solely on penalties by Shane Vallender to get onto the scoreboard and managed to sneak into an 18-3 lead in the 60th minute. But their hopes of a victory were dealt a blow in the 70th minute as Roodepoort centre Jesse Geyer touched down their second try to edge their way into a 20-18 lead.
Hamiltons, however, received a golden opportunity to win the match in the last minute after being awarded a penalty, but Vallender’s attempt was wide, which handed Roodepoort the win.
Hamiltons – Penalties: Shane Vallender (6).
Roodepoort – Tries: Gerhard Scholtz, Jesse Geyer. Conversions: Hendrik Gerhardus Oosthuizen (2). Penalties: Hendrik Gerhardus Oosthuizen (2).
Cell C Community Cup day three fixtures (Monday):
09h15 – Kempston Old Selbornians v Refreshhh! Centurion (7th/8th place playoff)
11h30 – Roses United v GAP Management Despatch (5th/6th place playoff)
13h45 – Jonsson College Rovers v Hamiltons (3rd/4th place playoff)
16h00 – Rustenburg Impala v Roodepoort (Cup final)
SWD Easter Tournament day two fixtures (Monday):
10h00 – Eagles Stars v Glen Roses
11h20 – Knysna Utd v Jaguars
12h40 – All Blacks v Calitzdorp
18h00 – Maori’s v Bridgton
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