Western Province overcome Pumas while Sharks sink Cheetahs in Currie Cup

The competition’s top four sides went head to head in Friday night’s Currie Cup action. Athlone Stadium witnessed a thrilling clash as Western Province staged a comeback to defeat the defending champions Pumas in a match marked by three lead changes, Jean-Luc du Plessis emerged as the hero for WP, converting a last-minute try to secure a 22-14 victory.

In Durban, the Sharks dismantled the Cheetahs to earn their fifth successive win in the competition, winning 35-23 at a drenched Kings Park.

WP seal important win

The Pumas got off to a strong start, with prop Cameron Dawson crossing the whitewash for a converted score inside the third minute.

WP fought back to seize control of the game, before Andrew Kota’s try and Tinus de Beer’s conversion gave the visitors a slim advantage of 14-12 with 30 minutes remaining.

But it was Du Plessis who stole the show at the death, and a disappointed Stonehouse told reporters post match: “You score the points and then you get the penalty, defend for 13 minutes, then you get a penalty and Devon Williams doesn’t kick it out and that puts you back into your 22 for another 12 minutes.”

The men from Mpumalanga slipped to third on the log after Friday’s loss, so their home clash next week against the Vodacom Bulls takes on added significance as they aim to reverse their recent fortunes and reestablish their dominance in the competition.

Sharks earn fifth successive Currie Cup win

Flyhalf Lionel Cronje kicked 15 points as the Sharks beat the Cheetahs at Kings Park on Friday night to extend their Currie Cup hot streak to five wins.

The 35-23 victory bumped the Sharks up to second place on the table, overtaking the Pumas who lost out to Western Province in Cape Town earlier on Friday.

The first quarter ended with the Cheetahs reduced to 14 men after flanker Sibabalo Qoma was sent to the sin bin, but veteran scrumhalf Ruan Pienaar defied the disadvantage with a well-taken penalty.

Though the momentum shifted to the hosts when Alwayno Visagie dotted down, Qoma returned from the naughty chair and punctuated two Cronje penalties with a try as the Sharks took a 21-10 lead into the break.

Pienaar closed the gap by another three points after the restart but the Sharks replied with a try from scrumhalf Tiaan Fourie, Cronje adding the extras (28-13).

Another Pienaar penalty in the fourth quarter was negated when Sharks replacement hooker Dameon Venter went over off the back of a maul to clinch the bonus point, and Cronje added the extras to surpass 200 Currie Cup points (35-16).

The visitors grabbed a consolation try shortly before the hooter, replacement flanker Daniel Maartens scoring his sixth of the season from a driven lineout.

The Sharks finished the round on 38 log points, trailing the log-leading Cheetahs on points difference.