Lions roaring past Bulls
Fri, 08 Aug 2008 21:28
The Lions, after an early season wobble, have hit some impressive mid-season form and moved further up the Absa Currie Cup standings with an impressive 30-27 bonus-point win over the Blue Bulls at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria on Friday.
Outscoring the Bulls by four tries to three - two of those coming from Man-of-the-match Willie Wepener - the Lions have moved from fifth to third on the standings in the past fortnight.
While they matched and mostly beat the Bulls in the physical battle, it was their penchant for expansive rugby that rocked the Bulls and entertained the Loftus crowd.
Bulls captain Wikus van Heerden, who struggled to hide his disappointment, was full of praise for a Lions team he said played "good rugby" in a very physical game.
However, he felt missed tackles cost his team.
"It was the most tackles we missed throughout the season," he said, promising that the Bulls will bounce back from this loss at home.
An obviously elated Lions captain Cobus Grobbelaar also spoke of the physical battle and he also felt the Lions can still lift their game a few gears.
"We didn't use all our opportunities, but we used more chances than the Bulls," Grobbelaar said.
He added that the Lions will now take a well-deserved break - they have a a bye this coming weekend.
There is little doubt that the unfancied Lions - who have some real grafters, but no glory boys in their pack - shaded the Bulls up front.
One battle in particular - that between Springbok props Lawrence Sephaka (Lions) and Gurthro Steenkamp (Bulls) - made for some interesting viewing. Sephaka showed that he can still play at international level, even though he has been overlooked in recent years. Steenkamp, who was axed from the Bok squad this week, has a lot of work to do to regain his place.
The Lions got an early opportunity, a penalty 25 metres out, which Earl Rose duly slotted for a 3-0 lead after just two minutes.
Four minutes later Morné Steyn levelled matters with a penalty of his own.
The tit-for-tat penalty game continued, as Rose had a shot at goal as Pedrie Wannenburg was penalised for going off his feet. Rose made it 6-3 after eight minutes.
And from the restart, which turned into a line-out, the Lions were penalised for playing the man in the air. But Steyn's shot bounced off the upright and the Lions held on to their slender lead.
But Steyn got his 'revenge' in the 18th minute when he launched a sweetly timed cross kick for Zane Kirchner to time his jump to perfection and beat a flat-footed Rayno Benjamin to the ball and flop over for a great try. Steyn slotted the conversion to give his team the lead for the first time - 10-6.
Steyn tried to stretch that lead with a drop-goal, but it drifted wide as the two sides bashed at each other in the brutal fashion that has become so typical of these trans-Jukskei derbies.
The Lions, again displaying their preference for an expansive game, regained the lead in the 28th minute as an interchange between forwards and backs saw hooker Willie Wepener in acres of space on the wing and the hooker needed no second invitation as he race to and over the tryline for the Lions' first try. Rose added the extras to make it 13-10 for the Lions.
A kicking game ensued and the Bulls seemed to have the edge in this department. with Steyn edging Rose for accuracy. But Rose's running game certainly gave the Lions backs a dimension that were not as prevalent in the Bulls team.
Steyn levelled matters up with a penalty in the 39th minute, as the Lions were penalised for holing on in the tackle.
The Lions had one last shot and almost from the restart Lions centre Jaco Pretorius stepped inside fellow Springbok Wynand Olivier and sprinted 60 metres for one of the best tries of the season - not just because of the individual brilliance, but also the simplicity and pace with which he beat both the first time tackler and the cover defence.
Rose slotted the conversion for a 20-13 lead at the break.
The Lions also opened the scoring in the second half and again it was their penchant for expansive and creative rugby that caught the Bulls napping. From within their 22 they started a counter - with forwards Willie Wepener and Franco van der Merwe, along with wing Rayno Benjamin, combining for an 80-metre try, scored by Van der Merwe. The catalyst was Wepener, who handled twice with deft passes. Rose's conversion attempt was wide, but at 25-13, the Bulls faced an uphill battle.
The bonus-point try wasn't long in coming - from a turnover the Lions quickly swung it to the right where Wepener was on hand to sprint 20 metres for his second try of the night. Again Rose's conversion attempt was wide, but at 30-13 the Lions were looking out of range.
Showing their desperation to get back into the game, the Bulls gave up a number of kickable penalties, but the Lions showed their defence was every bit as effective as their attacking prowess and they held out in three of those line-out situations.
The score came from another kind of set-piece, a scrum. It was replacement Burton Francis who used his pace to beat what looked like a tiring Lions defence. It was a rare moment of brilliance from the Bulls, but looked like the spark they needed. Steyn slotted the conversion to make it 30-20 in favour of the Lions.
The Bulls' comeback continued when, with 15 minutes to go, Pedrie Wannenburg pounced on a loose ball when the Lions failed to control a kick ahead and Wannenburg sprinted over for his team's third try. The conversion narrowed the gap to just three points - 30-27.
The Lions now opted for a territorial game, playing it well and making it difficult for the Bulls - who mostly found themselves pinned inside their own 22.
And playing from so deep meant taking risks and making errors, ensuring the Lions could settle things down by keeping it tight and among the forwards.
In fact Rose even time for a couple of drop-goal attempts - both of which drifted wide.
The Bulls had one last shot, as they finally won a line-out in Lions territory with less than two minutes to go.
But the Bulls lost their own line-out throw and eventually won a scrum back near halfway, as the Lions continued with their effective scrambling.
And the Lions also turned that ball over, as Jano Vermaak hacked it into touch for a famous win at Loftus.
The scorers:
For the Blue Bulls:
Tries: Kirchner, Francis, Wannenburg
Cons: Steyn 3
Pens: Steyn 2
For the Lions:
Tries: Wepener 2, Pretorius, Van der Merwe
Cons: Rose 2
Pens: Rose
2
Teams:
Blue Bulls: 15 Zane Kirchner, 14 Akona Ndungane, 13 Marius Delport, 12 Wynand Olivier, 11 John Mametsa, 10 Morné Steyn, 9 JP Joubert, 8 Pedrie Wannenburg, 7 Wikus van Heerden (captain), 6 Deon Stegmann, 5 Wilhelm Steenkamp, 4 Danie Rossouw, 3 Werner Kruger, 2 Bandise Maku, 1 Gurthrö Steenkamp.
Replacements: 16 Chiliboy Ralepelle, 17 Rayno Gerber, 18 Francois van Schouwenburg, 19 Jaco Engels, 20 Francois Hougaard, 21 Burton Francis, 22 Jacques Burger.
Lions: 15 Louis Ludik, 14 Michael Killian, 13 Jaco Pretorius, 12 Doppies la Grange, 11 Rayno Benjamin, 10 Earl Rose, 9 Jano Vermaak, 8 Willem Alberts, 7 Franco van der Merwe, 6 Cobus Grobbelaar (captain), 5 Gerhard Mostert, 4 Anton van Zyl, 3 Lawrence Sephaka, 2 Willie Wepener, 1 Heinke van der Merwe.
Replacements: 16 Ethienne Reynecke, 17 Gert Muller, 18 Ernst Joubert, 19 Justin Wheeler, 20 Chris
Jonck, 21 Louis Strydom, 22 Jaco van Schalkwyk.
Referee: Craig Joubert
Touch judges: Jaco Peyper, Cobus Wessels
TMO: Johann Meuwesen
