Seven of top eight cast in stone – Vodacom Cup Round 8 Review

May 3 • General News, Vodacom Cup • 2132 Views • Comments Off on Seven of top eight cast in stone – Vodacom Cup Round 8 Review

Seven of the eight Vodacom Cup quarter-finalists have cemented their positions in the playoffs, with three teams in the North Section still in the hunt for the final position amongst the pace-setters.

Victories to the SWD Eagles and GWK Griquas, coupled with a defeat to the Cell C Sharks XV, means the top four teams in the South Section have been determined.

The unbeaten DHL Western Province will host one of the quarter-finals in Cape Town after they beat the Toyota Free State XV by 30-29 in Bloemfontein on Saturday afternoon.

GWK Griquas, 27-24 victors over the KwaZulu-Natalians in Pietermaritzburg, cemented their second spot on the log, while the Eagles’ 36-17 win over the Border Bulldogs in Albertinia on Saturday afternoon means they will contest their second successive Vodacom Cup quarter-final.

In the final South Section match, the EP Kings returned to winning ways in Citrusdal when they beat the Boland Cavaliers by 44-10.

Meanwhile, the Vodacom Blue Bulls and Xerox Golden Lions – with eight Vodacom Cup titles between them – have sewn up the top two in the North Section and will host their quarter-final encounters.

The Steval Pumas, who had a bye this week, will finish third while five log points separate the Leopards XV, Hino Valke and Down Touch Griffons, one of whom will clinch fourth in the North Section.

The Vodacom Blue Bulls recorded the biggest win of the season when they beat the Assupol Limpopo Blue Bulls by 83-13 in Pretoria on Saturday afternoon.

The Leopards XV put themselves in a good position to reach the quarter-finals with a big 59-12 win over the Down Touch Griffons in Hartbeesfontein on Saturday afternoon, while the Hino Valke’s 45-7 win over the FNB Welwitschias in Windhoek on Friday evening means they still have a slim chance of reaching the playoffs.

FNB Welwitschias 7 Hino Valke 45

The Hino Valke won only their second game in this year’s Vodacom Cup competition by beating the FNB Welwitschias by 45-7 in the Hage Geingob Stadium in Windhoek on Friday evening.

With both sides finding themselves near the bottom of the log in the North Section, the East Randers’ bonus-point victory kept alive their slim chance of making the top four and qualifying for the quarter-finals.

The Hino Valke completely dominated the first half and ran in no less than six tries before the break in pretty much a one sided affair. As was the case a couple of weeks ago, Valke scrumhalf Anrich Richter was superb, running in two tries in the first 40 minutes. The visitors’ wing Riaan Arends echoed that performance by also dotting down twice before the halftime whistle.

Scorers:

FNB Welwitschias – Try: Johan Tromp. Conversion: Michael Kaizemi.

Hino Valke – Tries: Ernst Ladendorf, Anrich Richter (2), Riaan Arends (2), Willie Odendaal, Friddle de Wet. Conversions: Juan Kotze (5).

Toyota Free State XV 29 DHL Western Province 30

DHL Western Province flyhalf Robert du Preez played a key role as the Capetonians remained unbeaten in the Vodacom Cup with a 30-29 (halftime 17-3) victory over the Toyota Free State XV at the Free State Stadium in Bloemfontein on Saturday.

The DHL Western Province pivot, who kicked 21 points, played a vital role in two of the visitors’ three tries as the men from Cape Town desperately hung on for one-point win that extended their lead at the top of the South Section log to six points, which has guaranteed their place at the summit with just one league match remaining.

The Free Staters picked up two points for finishing within seven points and scoring four tries ensure they remain amongst the top sides on the log with the quarter-finals creeping closer.

Scorers: 

Toyota Free State XV – Tries: Henco Venter, Teunis Nieuwoudt, Maphutha Dolo, Reuben Johannes. Conversions: Neil Marais (2), Noel Marx. Penalty goal: Marais.

DHL Western Province – Tries: Kyle Lombard, Tshotsho Mbovane, EW Viljoen. Conversions: Robert du Preez (3). Penalty goals: Du Preez (3).

Leopards XV 59 Down Touch Griffons 12

The Leopards XV ran in eight tries as they thumped the Down Touch Griffons 59-12 (halftime 21-0) in their Vodacom Cup North Section match at Hartbeesfontein on Saturday.

Left wing Adri Jacobs crossed for two tries while inside centre Adriaan Engelbrecht ended with 24 points after scoring a try and kicking five conversions and a penalty goal as the Leopards XV returned to winning ways after a heavy 63-10 loss at the hands of the Xerox Golden Lions in their previous match.

The victory means the team from Potchefstroom moved into the top for on the North Section log with one league match remaining, displacing the Down Touch Griffons amongst the play-off contenders.

Scorers:

Leopards XV – Tries: Francois Robertse, Jaco Hayward, Kobus du Plessis, Adi Jacobs (2), Adriaan Engelbrecht, Myburgh Briers, Molotsi Bouwer. Conversions: Engelbrecht (8). Penalty goal: Engelbrecht.

Down Touch Griffons – Tries: Nicky Steyn (2). Conversion: Wynand Pienaar.

SWD Eagles 36 Border Bulldogs 17

Zandre Jordaan scored a brace of tries as the SWD Eagles picked up a bonus-point 36-17 (halftime 22-9) Vodacom Cup victory over the Border Bulldogs in Albertinia on Saturday.

The home side scored five tries to one as they confirmed their place in the top four with one league match remaining. The SWD Eagles are now seven points clear of the EP Kings in fifth place.

The Eagles have a difficult encounter in their final league match when they travel to Cape Town to play the table-topping and undefeated DHL Western Province while the Bulldogs end off their Vodacom Cup campaign with a home match against the Boland Cavaliers and will be attempting to avoid the wooden spoon.

Scorers:

SWD Eagles – Tries: Zandre Jordaan (2), Johannes Stander, Kirsten Ralph Heyns, Alshaun Bock. Conversions: Elric van Vuuren (4). Penalty goal: Van Vuuren.

Border Bulldogs – Try: Ayabonga Nomboyo. Penalty goals: Masixole Banda (4).

Boland Cavaliers 10 EP Kings 44 Boland Cavaliers 10

The EP Kings turned on the style in the second half as they recorded a 44-10 (halftime 19-10) victory over the Boland Cavaliers in their Vodacom Cup match at the Central Sports Grounds in Citrusdal on Saturday afternoon.

Going into the encounter both teams had only recorded a solitary victory each in the competition. The Cavaliers had conceded 50 points in both their last two matches while the Kings had lost their way against the SWD Eagles last week.

Scorers:

Boland Cavaliers – Try: Granville Adams. Conversion: Adams. Penalty goal: Adams.

EP Kings – Tries: Aidon Davis (3), Siviwe Soyizwapi, Eital Bredenkamp, Hansie Graaff ,Dylon Frylinck. Conversions: Graaff (3). Penalty goal: Graaff.

Cell C Sharks XV 24 GWK Griquas 27

GWK Griquas overcame a nine-point half-time deficit on their way to a hard-fought 27-24 (halftime 8-17) win over the Cell C Sharks XV in their Vodacom Cup South Section match at the Woodburn Stadium in Pietermaritzburg on Saturday.

The visitors also found themselves 24-15 down with just 10 minutes of the match left but they turned in a storming finish as they grabbed two tries, one of which was converted, in the space of five minutes to move to second on the South Section log standings.

It was a heart-breaking finish for the Cell C Sharks XV, who topped the South Section log the last two seasons, as they lost their fourth match of the season and won’t feature in the play-offs this season.

Scorers:

Cell C Sharks XV – Tries: Tonderai Chavhanga, Khaya Majola, Marius Louw. Conversions: Cameron Wright (3). Penalty goal: Wright.

GWK Griquas – Tries: Ederies Arendse, Jono Janse van Rensburg, Ntabeni Dukisa, Rocco Jansen. Conversions: Dean Grant (2). Penalty: Gouws Prinsloo.

Vodacom Blue Bulls 83 Assupol Limpopo Blue Bulls 13

The Vodacom Blue Bulls delivered a superb performance as they crushed the Assupol Limpopo Blue Bulls by 83-13 (24-10 halftime) at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday afternoon.

The home team scored 12 tries to one, with Travis Ismaiel, Jamba Ulengo, Roelof Smit and William Small-Smith crossing for a brace of tries each. Eight of the Vodacom Blue Bulls’ tries came in a second half where they ran riot and scored 59 points.

Scorers:

Vodacom Blue Bulls – Tries: Nqoba Mxoli, Kobus Marais, Travis Ismaiel (2), Jamba Ulengo (2), Roelof Smit (2), Kefentse Mahlo, Marquit September, William Small-Smith (2). Conversions: Marais (7), Josh Stander (3). Penalty goal: Marais.

Assupol Limpopo Blue Bulls – Try: Fanie Raseroka. Conversion: Anton Beswick. Penalty goals: Beswick (2).

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South Section

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Seven of top eight cast in stone – Vodacom Cup Round 8 Review

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