Bishops edge out Durbanville in dramatic one-point thriller
In a King Price Derby Series clash played on a lovely dry afternoon in Durbanville, Bishops evoked memories of their glory years with a thrilling 37-36 come-from-behind win against their nuggety hosts.
Durbanville delighted their fans with two superb tries early on. Diocesan College did themselves no favours, gifting Durbanville two more tries, which saw the hosts take a 22-3 lead after only 20 minutes. Right-wing Raydon Williams is cashing in with two clinical finishes.
Bishops showed their renowned willingness to give the ball width and found space on the edges, allowing them to close the gap to 22-15 at halftime. Scrumhalf Jack Fleck directing traffic and maintaining tempo with his crisp service.
Both teams had good opportunities at the start of the second half, but it was Bishops who got on the scoreboard first via a penalty from Caleb Clarke. It was a chip over the top from Clarke, which allowed Bishops to take the lead for the first time in the match.
The host struck back virtually immediately from the kick-off. Their flyhalf Hadley Erasmus finished off a classic counter-attack try. This made the score 29-25 to Durbanville with twenty minutes of the match left.
Soon after, a handling error from Bishops allowed Durbanville to hoof the ball through and extend their lead to 36-25. Bishops kept playing and asking questions of the Durbanville defence. The wide Durbanville field allowed gaps to open up, one of which was expertly exploited by replacement Eljaron Geduld.
At 36-30 with eleven minutes to go, Bishops could smell an upset. They upped the ante, spreading the ball wide and carrying the ball with intent. After going coast to coast, eventually right-wing Jono Horton popped up on the left, showing great leg drive to power over for the winning try.
There were still nine minutes left on the clock, though, during which Durbanville threw the kitchen sink at Bishops. Durbanville had a kickable penalty to win the match, which they missed, and Bishops held firm to take a memorable win.
Scorers:
Diocesan College 37 () – Tries: Jack Venter, Elihle Tsobo, Miyolo Ngculu, Eljaron Geduld, Jono Horton. Conversions: Caleb Clark (3). Penalties: Clarke (2). Hoërskool Durbanville 36 () – Tries: Raydon Williams (2), Cole Carls (2), Muller Janse van Vuuren, Hadley Erasmus. Conversions: Wihan Roux (3).
