Cheetahs, WP into semis
With the possibility of a home semifinal still within their reach at kick-off, the Toyota Free State Cheetahs did everything in their power to finish second in the Absa Currie Cup Premier Division when they beat neighbours GWK Griquas 49-39 at the Free State Stadium.
The Sharks put an end to the Cheetahs’ aspirations a bit later though, but the Free Staters will still be happy with a good victory a week before they have to travel to Durban to take on the KwaZulu-Natalians in a semifinal.
The home team scored six tries to Griquas’ five, but the visiting team got three of their tries in the final 10 minutes, when the Cheetahs had already wrapped up the match.
Young Cheetahs flanker Pieter Labuschagne, one of their finds of the season, scored two tries for the home team, one in each half.
When replacement centre Werner Griesel scored the Cheetahs’ sixth try in the 70th minute, they took a commanding 49-20 lead, after which Dusty Noble (wing), Steph Roberts (replacement hooker) and Sarel Pretorius (scrumhalf), in his final match for the Peacock Blues, scored tries to give Griquas’ score a bit more respectability.
Scorers:
Toyota Free State Cheetahs – Tries: Cameron Jacobs, Pieter Labuschagne (2), Adriaan Strauss, Philip Burger, Werner Griesel. Conversions: Nico Scheepers, Tewis de Bruyn (4). Penalties: Scheepers (2), De Bruyn.
GWK Griquas – Tries: Riaan Viljoen, Leon Karemaker, Dusty Noble, Steph Roberts, Sarel Pretorius. Conversions: Rudi Vogt (3). Penalties: Vogt (2).
DHL Western Province 43 (24) Ford Pumas 18 (8)
Siya Kolisi’s try in the 58th minute gave DHL Western Province a four-try bonus point which was enough to secure them fourth position on the Absa Currie Cup Premier Division log in their victory of 43-18 over the Ford Pumas at DHL Newlands.
But they had to work hard for this one. After returning Springbok Juan de Jongh crossed for WP’s third try in the 29th minute, the Pumas held them off for half an hour before Kolisi could score the vital five-pointer.
WP started like a house on fire, with another returning Bok, Jean de Villiers, getting the score board rolling in the third minute. Hooker Deon Fourie also crossed the chalk, in the 11th minute before De Jongh made it three.
And Province finished as they started. After Kolisi’s try, JJ Engelbrecht and Bryan Habana’s tries pushed WP’s score up to 43. But the Pumas deserve some credit as they never stopped working and really took the game to the Capetonians, with loose forwards Jaco Bouwer and RW Kember (replacement) scoring tries for the Pumas.
Scorers:
DHL Western Province – Tries: Jean de Villiers, Deon Fourie, Juan de Jongh, Siya Kolisi, JJ Engelbrecht, Bryan Habana. Conversions: Demetri Catrakilis (3), Conrad Jantjes (2). Penalty: Catrakilis.
Ford Pumas – Tries: Jaco Bouwer, RW Kember. Conversion: Carl Bezuidenhout. Penalties: Bezuidenhout (2). — Staff Reporter, SPortsCentral