Police v Rovers in club final
Pretoria Police will play College Rovers in the 2012 SARU National Club Championship Final after both teams recorded impressive semifinal wins at the Impala Club in Rustenburg on Wednesday.
And in a unique twist, the Plate final will also be contested by Police and Rovers teams, after Bloemfontein Police and Welkom Rovers went through to an all-Free State province decider after victories over Noordelikes and Naka Bulls respectively.
College Rovers, who won the national title in 2010, advanced to their fourth Final in seven years with a clinical 72-10 victory over Border champions Old Selbornians, who battled manfully but were no match for the streetwise and super-fit KwaZulu-Natalians.
It was Rovers’ 78th win in 82 matches since the start of the 2009 season, an incredible streak made all the more impressive by the fact that it includes four Club Champs campaigns in addition to KwaZulu-Natal league and Cup matches.
“We’re very happy to get through and now it’s a case of who's got the most left in the tank,” said Rovers’ coach Robert du Preez, the former Springbok scrumhalf. “The guys played well today and they know what they need to do now because they've been here before. We can’t wait for Friday.”
In the other semifinal, two tries to wing Michael Nienaber, a late score from fellow wing Ruan van Loo and 15 points from the boot of flyhalf Dillon Laubscher allowed Pretoria Police, the 1995 and 1996 national club champions, to advance to the final for the fourth time after a 35-25 win over hosts Rustenburg Impala.
“It was a very tough game but I'm very, very proud of my players,” said Police skipper Nico Luus. “All the hard work has been worth it and now we have one more hurdle left to clear. We’ve had a very successful season but now we have to finish the job.”
Day Four fixtures (Friday, September 21):
Plate Final
13.00 – Bloemfontein Police v Welkom Rovers
Cup Final
15.00 – College Rovers v Pretoria Police
Day Three results (Wednesday, September 19):
Cup semifinals
The scorers:
For College Rovers:
Tries: Wilkinson, Verster 2, Mtembu 2, Adam, Stoltz 2, Specman, Robbertse.
Cons: Dannhauser 3, De Kock 5
Pens: Dannhauser 2
For Old Selbornians:
Try: Rogers
Con: Warner
Pen: Warner
For Rustenburg Impala:
Tries: Lubbe, Jooste, Williamson
Cons: Kok 2
Pens: Kok 2
For Pretoria Police:
Tries: Van Loo 2, Nienaber 2
Cons: Laubscher 3
Pens: Laubsher 2
DG: Laubscher.
Plate semifinals
For Noordelikes:
Try: Smith
Con: Byleveldt
For Bloemfontein Police:
Tries: Meyer, Shepperson, Hertzog
Cons: Du Plessis 3
Pens: Du Plessis 2
For Naka Bulls:
Tries: Nel 2
Cons: Boshoff
Pens: Boshoff 2, Mulder 2
For Welkom Rovers:
Tries: Cocken, De Klerk, Ball, Klopper
Cons: Santos 2, Van Wyk.
Pens: Santos 3
Day Two results (Monday, September 17):
Cup quarterfinals
Old Selbornians 28-26 Brakpan
College Rovers 41-30 Despatch
Durbanville-Bellville 25-36 Pretoria Police
Rustenburg Impala 31-19 Roodepoort
Plate quarterfinals
Naka Bulls 25-23 Villagers Worcester
Blanco 22-37 Welkom Rovers
Noordelikes 38-30 Witrivier
Bloemfontein Police 22-17 Ore Sishen
Day One results (Saturday, September 15):
Roodepoort 26-12 Naka Bulls
College Rovers 61-0 Noordelikes
Bloemfontein Police 33-43 Old Selbornians
Durbanville-Bellville 53-20 Blanco
Pretoria Police 43-12 Welkom Rovers
Ore Sishen 0-28 Brakpan
White River 10-72 Despatch
Rustenburg Impala 53-21 Villagers Worcester