Blue Bulls and Western Province to contest final of u20 Week

Defending champions, DHL Western Province, delivered a masterclass of rugby at Queens High School, in Johannesburg, with a big 57-3 win over Border, confirming their place in the final of the SA Rugby u20 Women’s Week on Friday, where they will face the Blue Bulls.

The Pretoria outfit made it to the final courtesy of a hard-fought 20-7 win over tournament hosts, the Golden Lions.

It was a day of close results and drama, with Boland and Free State playing to an exciting draw, while Griquas edged the Limpopo Blue Bulls by five points, and the SWD Eagirls scored the only try of the match in their narrow 11-0 win over the Valke.

Earlier in the day, the Pumas engaged fifth gear to beat the Northern Invitational XV 33-0 for the second biggest win of the day, while KwaZulu-Natal rebounded nicely from a loss to handed Eastern Province a 26-5 defeat.

Day Two match reviews

Western Province started like a house on fire against Border and then got hotter and hotter. Their 57-3 win (40-0 halftime) was full value for those watching as they effortlessly combined forward power with clinical backline execution, leaving Border clutching at thin air for most of the match.

They scored the first of their nine tries in the opening minutes through winger Ronecia Gordon after good work by the forwards. No 8 Logan Welman scored soon after and then initiated a try for lock Abigail Smit as WP showed too much power and synergy on attack for a shell-shocked Border side to lead 19-0 after only 12 minutes

Welman got a second three minutes later, again converted by Anja le Roux, for a 26-0 lead. Scrumhalf Nikicia Eksteen broke well and Welman was on hand to finish the move for her second before flanker Anothando Khatshwa scored their fifth and Le Roux added two more for a 33-0 lead.

The duo combined soon after, this time with a Le Roux show-and-go and an inside pass handing the flanker her second in as many minutes to bring 40 points up in 30 minutes played.

Border scored first in the second half with a penalty goal, but it was not long before the blue and white hoops were in full flow again.

Lock and captain Sarah Krone scored after another strong Welman burst, and Le Roux again added the extras for a 47-3 lead. Prop Lithethaa Maqhude added another try and, from the restart, WP scored again, this time through wing Saadiqah Corbett.

The Blue Bulls scored first against the Golden Lions in the final match of the afternoon, dotting down their first try after five minutes. The Lions struck back when centre Keletso Masola snatched up a loose pass by the Bulls’ backline and raced away to score under the sticks. The conversion was good and the scores were level.

That was not for long, however, as left wing Tiarisha Maritz showed her class with a well-timed run down the touchline. The conversion was made and the lead restored to seven. That margin remained until halftime.

It was extended to 10 points with 20 minutes to play when Amukelani Lisenga kicked a penalty goal. By then it had become clear that the Pretoria side had gained the upper hand on their Gauteng rivals.

A second penalty goal by the outside centre extended the lead to 13 points and that proved to be enough as the home side was unable to break through, despite some desperate attacks on the Blue Bulls; try line.

In the opening match of the day, the Pumas secured their first victory of the week with a commanding 31-0 win over the Northern Invitational side.

The Pumas scored in the opening five minutes and never looked back, chalking up two more tries for a 21-0 lead at the break.

Both teams were guilty of basic errors, but the willingness of the Pumas to attack from anywhere handed them the advantage. They scored two more tries in the second half to close out the match.

The SWD Eagirls claimed an 11-0 win over the Valke in a tightly contested match that was dominated by defence. Both teams showed a willingness to attack but often didn’t execute the basics accurately, resulting in a stop start affair.

The Eagirls kicked an early penalty and held onto that three-point advantage until the break before another tight half ensued. The SWD side showed better game management in the second half and scored the only points – a try and another penalty goal – to secure their first win in the tournament.

Griquas flanker Rose Haka scored early in their match against Limpopo Blue Bulls off the back of a strong scrum and her team held on for a closely contested 10-5 win. While both teams demonstrated attacking intent, they were let down by handling errors.

The hard-fought affair continued in the second half, but the Northern Cape side played with more purpose and variation on attack and Haka scored her second out wide after brushing off two defenders.

Limpopo left wing Amaka Mabosi scored a great try shortly after that to cut the lead to five points, but sadly for the team from up north, they ran out of time and Griquas claimed a deserved win.

KwaZulu-Natal bounced back from their opening day defeat to DHL Western Province, outplaying Eastern Province 26-5. Most of the hard work was done in the first half, when they scored three tries to race into a 21-0 lead by halftime.

Another try early in the second half pushed the lead to 26-0, but credit to EP, who worked their way into the game and finished stronger. Their second-half effort was rewarded when Lithalethu Nombakuse scored in the final minute of the match, with the hard-running outside back showing her opponents a clean pair of heels.

Boland scored twice in the last five minutes of their match against Free State to claim a dramatic 24-24 draw. Unfortunately for the Western Cape side, after replacement fly-half Courtney Jenniker went over in the corner for their final try following a blistering run, she was unable to convert the difficult kick.

An early try handed Boland the lead in the first half, but Free State replied with a try of their own just before the halftime buzzer through flank Neidene Solomons, and converted it to lead at the break.

The Bloemfontein side took control of proceedings in the second half with another try by Solomons and added two more to move into a handsome lead. With 10 minutes to play, they looked likely to win.

Boland, though, kept fighting and produced an outstanding comeback with two tries in rapid succession levelling the scores.

Scoring summaries:

 Pumas 33 (21), Northern Invitational 0 (0)

Pumas – Tries: Success Leshaba, Chantelle Mtsweni, Chris Ross, Megan Guambe, Alicia Mahlalela. Conversions: Fifi Mafa, Anele Dube (3).

SWD Eagirls 11 (3), Valke 0 (0).

SWD – Try: Ashley-Anne- Williams. Penalty goals: Lukho Mpangeva (2).

Griquas 10 (5), Limpopo Blue Bulls 5 (0)

GW – Tries: Rose Haka (2).
LBB – Try: Amaka Mabosi.

KwaZulu-Natal 26 (21), Eastern Province 5 (0)

KZN – Tries: Akhona Gumede (2), Xoliswa Mbatha, Sphesihle Fihlela. Conversions: Melissa Younie (3)
EP – Try: Lithalethu Nombakuse.

Free State 24 (7), Boland 24 (5)

FS – Tries: Mpolai Lesutha, Liane Gerber, Neidene Solomons (2). Conversions: Lizelle Mitchell (2).
Boland – Tries: Shade Jackson, Keira Samuls, Tereske Kabuika, Courtney Jenniker. Conversions: Jenniker, Hayley Hardneck.

DHL Western Province 57 (40), Border 3 (0)

WP – Tries: Logan Welman (2), Abigail Smit, Ronecia Gordon, Anothando Khatshwa (2), Sarah Krone, Lithethaa Maqhude, Saadiqah Corbett. Conversions: Anja le Roux (6).
Border: Penalty goal: Kuhle Lumkwana

Golden Lions 7(7), Blue Bulls 20 (14)

Lions – Tries: Keletso Masola. Conversions: Siphumelele Mdlalose
Bulls – Tries: Tiarisha Maritz, Puseletso Tshoshane. Conversions: Amukelani Lisenga (2). Penalty goals: Lisenga (2).

• The fixtures for the final round of matches at Queens High School on Friday have been confirmed:

B-Field

08:30 – Northern Invitational v EP
09:40 – Valke v Pumas
10:50 – Free State v Limpopo Blue Bulls

A-Field

08:30 – Boland v SWD
09:40 – Griquas v KZN
10:50 – Golden Lions v Border
12:00 – Western Province v Blue Bulls (final)

Issued by SA Rugby Communications.