Leopards break their Cup duck
Fri, 28 Aug 2009 21:05
Try time: Leopards wing Shuaib Samaai scores one of his two tries
The Leopards won their first game since re-admissions to the Currie Cup Premier Division when they smashed the Boland Cavaliers 50-16 in their Round Eight match in Potchefstroom on Friday.
While there is a long way to go and a a promotion-relegation play-off series at the end of the season remains a distinct possibility, the men from Potchefstroom have announced their arrival on the big stage after a first half of the season that can best be described as disappointing.
Friday's win at least laid a foundation on which they can build for their remaining games in the competition and the great points difference also helped them move off the bottom of the standings.
It was a bottom-of-the-log match, seven versus eight, but the quality of rugby was such that you would never have guessed it. Both sides played with creative verve as they ran and passed. And in the end eight beat seven by a huge margin - one that Boland did not really deserve as for much of the time they were in touch and they contributed greatly to this fine match.
The first could have gone either way and it was only at the end of the half that the Leopards opened up an eight-point lead. In that half Boland had outscrummed the home said and forced turnover in post-tackle contests. But the second half was a different matter at the tackle and it was off turnovers that the Leopards most hurt the Bolanders.
It was a cold night in Potchefstroom and Olën Park was sparsely populated but those who were there had a lot of fun.
The home side started well as strong Russell Jeacocks broke out and sent sturdy Shuaib Samaai running. Right throughout Samaai was a thorn in the Boland flesh and he ended with two tries - very similar tries.
Boland scored first as they ran from a scrum and Justin Peach goaled when the Leopards were penalised at a tackle. 3-0 after 12 minutes,
The Leopards attacked on the left a fair way out and outside centre Jovan Bowles, son of a former SARU wing Xavier Bowles, grubbered ahead. Samaai chased, the ball stood up with a gentle smile and he was over in the corner. Cecil Dumont, who had hit the upright with an early penalty, missed the conversion and then went on a great goal-kicking spree. 5-3 after 17 minutes. Then three kicks by Dumont pushed it up to 14-3 - a penalty at a scrum, a soaring drop from the Boland 10-metre line and 15 metres in from touch and a penalty against Zolani Mofu at a tackle after a great attack by the Leopards when they seemed certain to score.
Then it was Peach's turn to kick a penalty for obstruction on 33 minutes and then for offside by Philip Lemmer on 35 minutes and the score was 14-9. Boland were not out of it but then Michael Bondisio broke from a scrum under pressure and gave to right wing Danie Dames who in turn gave inside to lock Rynard Landman. Landman was felled and again Mofu conceded a penalty at a tackle. 17-9 - the half-time score.
The Leopards won the second half 33-7. It was a half in which Boland missed tackles and conceded turnovers.
The first Leopards try came when Christo van Niekerk bent low to pick up a stray pass at his ankles and then run 30 metres through four would-be "tacklers" for a try at the posts. 24-9. The Leopards were going to win.
Boland were close when Elgar Watts broke but could just not ground the ball. But then the Leopards backs went offside at the scum and Danie van der Merwe tapped and gave to big Carel Hoffman who barged straight ahead and over for the try. 24-16.
Any Boland hopes of a rival were soon dashed as the Leopards scored 14 points in four minutes.
Their scrum was going backwards when Bondisio broke on the right getting round Wendal Wehr with a hand-off, dummied to beat Watts and Luvo Sogidashe and left Hoffman grasping thin air.
The Leopards' bonus point came when Boland won a scrum. Replacement Llewellyn Adonis tried an underarm flip which Dumont intercepted and away he raced 52 metres down the middle of the field to score under the posts. 38-16 after 57 minutes.
The Leopards were now free to enjoy the match and it seemed that coach Chaka Willemse's belief that his team was improving was fully justified.
From a turnover the Leopards broke out and attacked. Bondisio tapped a penalty and forced his nuggety way forward before giving a clever pass to Wilhelm Koch who managed a pressure pass to Van Niekerk who stepped inside Wehr to score in the left corner, whence Dumont converted. 45-16 with 9 minutes to play.
Samaai had scored the first try and he scored the last try. The first try came off a grubber by Bowles and so did this last try ads Samaai chased. The ball rolled into the in-goal and there waited for the sturdy wing to dot it down. The conversion was missed but it mattered not.
Man of the Match: There were several Leopard candidates - Bom Samaai, Jovan Bowles who tackled hard apart form his two great grubbers, Thabo Mamojele and Wilhelm Koch, but our Man of the Match, the undoubted star performer, was scrumhalf Michael Bondisio who passed with speed and accuracy straight from the ground, who ran with speed and strength and who kicked well. It was an all-round performance by the energetic, Middelburg-born, Lichtenburg educated young man.
The scorers:
For the Leopards:
Tries: Samaai 2, Van Niekerk 2, Bondesio, Dumont
Cons: Dumont 4
Pens: Dumont 3
DG: Dumont
For the Boland Cavaliers:
Try: Hoffman
Con: Peach
Pens: Peach 3
Yellow card: Zandré Jordaan (Boland, 75 - foul play, high tackle)
Teams:
Leopards: 15 Russell
Jeacocks, 14 Danie Dames, 13 Jovan Bowles, 12 Basil de Doncker, 11 Shuaib Samaai, 10 Cecil Dumont, 9 Michael Bondesio, 8 Christo van Niekerk, 7 Thabo Mamojele, 6 Wilhelm Koch (captain), 5 Edrich Linde, 4 Rynard Landman, 3 Philip Lemmer, 2 Marthinus van der Westhuizen, 1 Divan Kotze.
Replacements: 16 Gavin Williamson, 17 Nardus Lombard, 18 Rudi Mathee, 19 Riaan Swanepoel, 20 Theo van Wyk, 21 Clayton Durand, 21 Jean Tiedt.
Boland Cavaliers: 15 Justin Peach, 14 Deon Scholtz, 13 Cornal Hendricks, 12 Hein Myburgh, 11 Luvo Sogidashe, 10 Elgar Watts, 9 Danie van der Merwe, 8 Carel Hoffman, 7 Wendal Wehr, 6 Zolani Mofu, 5 Rito Hlungwane, 4 Nico Esterhuyse, 3 Jacobie Adriaanse, 2 Clemen Lewis (captain), 1 Janro van Niekerk.
Replacements: 16 Harry Vermaas, 17 Johan Roets, 18 George Earl, 19 Zandré Jordaan, 20 Denzil Willemse, 21 Ernie Kruger, 22 Llewellyn Adonis.
Referee: Jaco Peyper
Assistant referees: Ben Crouse, Mtheleni Msileni
TMO: Gerrie Coetzee
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