The iSG Pumas and DHL Western Province remained undefeated in the SuperSport Rugby Challenge after six rounds of pulsating action at Wolfson Stadium in Kwazakhele on Sunday, but the manner in which they won this weekend was vastly different.
The defending champions totally outplayed Windhoek Draught Welwitschias in Nelspruit and scored 16 tries in a 106-0 win, but the Capetonians needed a late surge to keep their undefeated status as they beat the Toyota Free State Cheetahs XV 37-33 at the Rugby Festival held in Port Elizabeth.
Both Pumas (North Section) and Western Province (South Section) have secured their semi-final spots with a round to go, but who the other two teams will be to join will only be clear at the conclusion of the final round of fixtures next Sunday after the Rugby Festival at Florida Park in Cape Town.
North Section
The Pumas have scored 42 tries so far in the competition, 16 of which came in Nelspruit on Saturday. The defending champions are currently in amazing form and will be tough to beat.
Elsewhere, the Xerox Golden Lions XV kept their North Section semi-final hopes alive with a good 42-15 win over Down Touch Griffons in Johannesburg. The Gauteng side laid the foundation of their win in the first half, when they scored three tries to none.
Thanks to this result, the Golden Lions are on 22 log points and can still overhaul Tafel Lager Griquas (26 log points) in the final round. As luck would have it, the two sides meet at Tafel Lager Park next weekend.
The men from the Northern Cape travelled a short distance north east up the N12 to Leeudoringstad, where they had to overcome a half-time deficit (16-14) to beat the Leopards 31-16 at Leeudoringstad Rugby Club.
The Vodacom Bulls are hitting their straps and scored a solid 47-22 victory (half-time 21-12) win over Valke at Bosman Stadium in Brakpan, but unfortunately they left their charge too late and will not make the play-offs.
South Section
With Western Province leading the way, some really entertaining matches highlighted the South Section this year.
A stunning late comeback saw the men from Cape Town retain their unbeaten record as they edged the Cheetahs 37-33 at the SuperSport Rugby Challenge Festival at the Wolfson Stadium in Port Elizabeth on Sunday afternoon.
In a very entertaining encounter, an impressive performance from the Bloemfonteiners saw them leading Western Province by 16 points with 14 minutes to play, but a yellow card to Cheetahs flank Albertus de Bod proved very costly as the Capetonians scored 17 points before he returned, and added a late penalty goal to seal the comeback.
In the other match at the Rugby Festival, the home town faithful was treated to a somewhat unlikely win for the Multisure EP Elephants over the more fancied Sharks, who had their slim semi-finals hopes dashed. The home side won 27-7 after a strong first half all but confirmed the result.
Another entertaining match was played at Boland Stadium in Wellington on Saturday, where the Boland Cavaliers enhanced their claim to a semi-final spot with a solid 52-16 (half-time 26-6) win over Zimbabwe Academy. They scored eight tries, which secured the bonus point as well.
At 25 log points, they still need to face Western Province next Sunday, while Cheetahs (22 log points) face Border in Bloemfontein.
On Friday evening in George, the SWD Eagles edged the Border Bulldogs by 18-17 in their clash at Outeniqua Park. The Bulldogs had a late penalty attempt at goal to win, but the kick went wide.
For free daily local news in the south, visit our sister newspapers Alberton Record, Comaro Chronicle, Southern Courier and Get it Joburg South Magazine.
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