The 2019 Women’s Premier Division finalists, DHL Western Province and the Border Ladies, proved once again why they deserve to battle it out for the title this season after further victories in the penultimate pool round of the competition.
WP delivered a strong second-half performance against the Cell C Sharks Women at a soaking wet Newlands in Cape Town for a 29-5 victory, while the Border Ladies scored a try at the death against the Boland Dames in Wellington for a nail-biting 24-22 victory.
In the Women’s First Division, the Valke outclassed the Limpopo Blue Bulls with an impressive 61-12 victory in Brakpan to move into second place on the standings in Group 2 behind the Mastercard Golden Lions Women, while Griquas held their nerve for a 27-22 win in a tightly-fought Group 1 encounter against the Griffons in Kimberley
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Premier Division results
A second-half breakaway steered WP to their ninth consecutive Women’s Premier Division victory of the season against the Sharks, with the team earning a 29-5 victory at a soaking wet Newlands on Saturday.
The KwaZulu-Natalians got off the mark quickly with a try by Springbok Women loose forward Sizo Solontsi in the fourth minute, and that proved to be the only points in the half as a combination of handling errors and solid defence kept both teams at bay.
The Capetonians, who will be hoping to defend their title in the final two weeks – created try-scoring opportunities in the first half, but crucial errors close to the tryline denied them from capitalising on them.
The hosts, however, found their rhythm in the second half and improved their finishing, which allowed them to score four unanswered tries, while Bok Women utility back Zintle Mpupha kept the scoreboard ticking with her fine form all around.
Mpupha scored a try and kicked three conversions and a penalty goal to contribute 14 points in the match. She put her team on the scoreboard with a try in the 49th minute and then added the extra two as well as a penalty goal shortly after to push them into a 10-5 lead.
This bolstered their confidence and they did particularly well to make use of the space out wide, and the rewards followed with Simamkele Namba (wing) touching down twice in the 60th and 79th minutes and Donelle Snyders (fullback) in the 74th minute.
The Cape Town team backed this up with a solid defensive effort, which denied the Sharks from adding to their score, and this saw the home side seal the convincing 29-5 victory.
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