Tigers stun Saders in derby

IT was the proverbial ‘bad day at the office’ for the Nashua Crusaders as Varsity College RFC stunned the home team by 32-14 in their Fidelity Moor Cup clash on Saturday.

The Tigers, who had lost a fiercely contested Durban North derby to the Saders earlier on in the season, looked to be more geed up on the day, and were first on the scoreboard thanks to some fancy footwork by star winger Sizo Maseku.

VC flyhalf Darren Nyman easily converted to give the away side a 7-0 lead just three minutes into the first half. The Crusaders response was swift and decisive as a scything run from Cameron Dunlop down the right side of the field found the welcoming hands of Troy Chiocchetti who crashed over the whitewash.

With the scores levelled, the Tigers dominated possession and territory and they were helped by a number of unforced errors by the Crusaders forwards. Two more penalties from Nyman meant his side held a six point lead going into the break.
The second half began in the same fashion with the away side making all the plays.

They were again rewarded through determined go forward ball and two tries in the space of 10 minutes seemed to rock the home side’s confidence.

The Saders however, sensed a comeback when Tigers scrumhalf Ashton du Plessis was sin binned for cynical play.
The resulting penalty saw nuggety scrumhalf Aaron Booth smuggle his way over the line. Dunlop easily converting to keep the boys from the North in touch.

The final nail in the coffin though came just seven minutes from the end as a Hail Mary pass from Dunlop saw Lex Botha intercept the ball and sprint almost 50 meters to the tryline. Nyman again converted to hand his side victory by 18 points.
Crusaders coach, Ronnie Uys, had nothing but praise for the opposition saying they were deserved winners.

“All credit goes to the Tigers, they were better than us in all aspects of today’s match. I think we let ourselves down at the breakdown point and in the lineouts. It’s a good wake up call for us.

“We just have to fight hard to make sure we bounce back and and fight hard going into our remaining fixtures in a strong fashion,” he said.