Cape Town – The Pumas will face the Sharks XV in Nelspruit and Griquas will host the Free State XV in Kimberley next weekend to determine the finalists of the SuperSport Rugby Challenge.
The eventual winner will become the new champion after the Free State XV knocked out defending champions, Western Province, on Sunday with their 26-20 victory in the fourth quarter-final match of the weekend.
Their reward is a trip to Kimberley, where the Griquas scored a convincing 51-22 win over the Cavaliers on Saturday to secure a home semi-final.
The Free State midfielders, Carel Coetzee and Benhard Janse van Rensburg, dominated proceedings on a wet and slippery Green Point Track in Cape Town, as they adapted better to the conditions. The defeat for Western Province was their first ever in the competition and their most costly by far.
The Pumas remained the only undefeated side in the tournament after they edged the Blue Bulls 30-24 in a hard-fought encounter in Nelspruit on Saturday. They will host the Sharks XV, who outplayed the Golden Lions completely, for a rewarding 48-12 win in Durban.
Flyhalf Garth April was the star of the show, as he scored 28 points for his team in sublime performance.
The men in black and white scored four tries in no time, with their backs showing their class on attack.
The visitors scored first through a fourth minute try by Junior Springboks ace, Wandisile Simelane, but the April show started soon thereafter, with the crowd treated to a full array of skills from the flyhalf. He scored two tries, two penalty goals and six conversions before leaving the field to an applause.
Griquas had too many weapons in their arsenal for the visiting Boland Cavaliers, who tried hard, but could not stop the all-out attack from the home side.
The Kimberley faithful were treated to six tries by their team, with the forwards and backs getting on the scoresheet as the ‘Kwaste’ delivered a perfect display of a team effort.
In Nelspruit, three penalty goals by the leading points’ scorer in the competition, Chris Smith, proved the difference between the Pumas and Blue Bulls. Smith, the only player to score 100 points in the competition, also converted two of the three tries scored by his team.
The weekend’s results and points’ scorers are:
Pumas 30 (20), Blue Bulls 24 (19)
Pumas – Tries: Jeandre Rudolph, Marne Coetzee, Frankie Herne. Conversions: Chris Smith (2), Justin van Staden. Penalty Goals: Smith (3).
Blue Bulls – Tries: Earll Douwrie, Xolisa Guma (2), Dewald Maritz. Conversions: Tinus de Beer, Douwrie.
Sharks XV (19) 55, Golden Lions (7) 12
Sharks XV – Tries: Courtney Winnaar (2), Garth April (2), Grant Williams, Jeremy Ward, Tera Mtembu. Conversions: April (6), Francois de Villiers. Penalties: April (2).
Golden Lions XV – Tries: Wandisile Simelane, James Venter. Conversion: Shaun Reynolds.
Griquas 51 (30), Boland Cavaliers 22 (10)
Griquas – Tries: Kyle Steyn, Ederies Arendse, De Wet Kruger, Sias Koen, AJ Coertzen (2). Conversions: George Whitehead (5), Andre Swarts. Penalty Goals: Whitehead (3)
Boland Cavaliers – Tries: Rinus Bothma, Charles Mayeza, Edwin Sass. Conversions: Watts (2). Penalty Goal: Elgar Watts.
Western Province 20 (10), Free State XV 26 (14).
Free State XV – Tries: Carel Coetzee (2), Jasper Wiese, Benhard Janse van Rensburg. Conversions: Benhard Janse van Rensburg (3).
Western Province – Tries: David Brits, Tristan Lleyds. Conversions: Grant Hermanus (2). Penalty Goals: Hermanus (2).