Affies win in Bloemfontein

For the second year in succession, Affies beat Grey College, this time 37-31 in Bloemfontein in an FNB Classic Clash. They richly deserved the win,

Two late tries, worth 14 points, made the result look better for Grey than it probably was. They were well beaten by the powerful Affies side.

It was an excellent match – a far cry from the thump-'n-bang of modern rugby as the backs of each side were given the freedom to run and sought to outwit their opponents. It was a wonderful advert for schools' rugby in South Africa with two of the very top schools in action. (Before this match, Grey were ranked second on the FNB Top 20, Affies fourth.) The nearly 8 000 spectators obviously knew that this was a match of the highest calibre.

Two of the back, one on each side, were excellent centre Jurie Linde of Affies who played SA Schools last year and tall fullback EW Viljoen of Grey who played for Free State at the 2012 Craven Week. Things happened when these players got the ball./

Grey started the match with an impressive running maul and when Affies went offside Stephen Rautenbach goaled. 3-0 after 2 minutes.

Jurie Linde started the next score with a break and when Grey cleared purely Affies attacked on the right and Linde raced over to score. 5-3 after 7 minutes.

So the scoring stayed till Affies were again offside and Rautenbach again goaled. 6-5 after 12 minutes. Eight minutes later Ivan van Zyl, the Affies scrumhalf and goal kicker, kicked a penalty to put his side 8-6 in the lead.

But Grey soon got it back when Viljoen started a counterattack off a kick and raced down the left. He gave to loosehead Andrew du Plessis and the prop did not diminish the speed of the attack and gave a perfect pass to left wing Henry Immelman who scored in the corner. 11-8 after 22 minutes.

The lead did not last long as Affies battered at the Grey line  till left wing Thys van Wyk scored. Van Zyl converted. 15-11 to Affies after 26 minutes.

It was a gripping match.

Affies were penalised for hands in a ruck and from 36 metres out and five metres from touch, Rautenbach goaled. 15-14 after 33 minutes, but the home side may well have wished it had not happened.

Affies kicked off and Grey dropped the kick-off. Sturdy hooker Francois Steyn, a Craven Week Blue Bull last year, grabbed the ball and raced through untouched for a try at the posts. 22-14 after 34 minutes, the half-time score.

Penalties by Van Zyl and Rautenbach took the score to 25-17. Again Grey suffered at the kick-off. They had changed flyhalves at half-time and from the kick-off after the penalty Steyn charged down  André Swarts's attempt at a clearing kick and Van Zyl grounded the ball in in-goal. 32-17 after 51 minutes.

A brilliant pass by big lock RG Snyman sent Linde racing down the right. He checked and stepped inside three defenders to score. 37-17

Props got both of Grey's two late tries as they battered at the Affies' line. First it was mobile loosehead Andrew du Plessis.  Scrumhalf Heinrich Stander tapped a five-metre penalty and flick a reverse pass inside to Du Plessis who burst over at the posts. But there were just three minutes to play Affies came back on the attack with four scrums five metres from the Affies' line and then another five-metre penalty till replacement prop Callie Janse van Vuuren leapt over prone bodies to score under the posts.

Scorers:

For Affies:

Tries: Jurie Linde 2, Thys van Wyk, Francois Steyn, Ivan van Zyl

Cons: Ivan van Zyl 3

Pen: Ivan van Zyl 2

For Grey College:

Tries: Henry Immelman, Andrew du Plessis, Callie Janse van Vuuren

Cons: Stephen Rautenbach 2

Pen: Stephen Rautenbach 4

Teams

Grey College: 15 EW Viljoen, 14 Theo Ferreira, 13 Stephen Rautenbach, 12 Carel Durow, 11 Henry Immelman, 10 Dwayne Wessels, 9 Heinrich Stander, 8 Reinhard Arndt, 7 Marius Louw (captain), 6 Luan Reynders, 5 Andries Kriek, 4 De Wet Bezuidenhout, 3 Ruan Kramer, 2 Martin Wipplinger, 1 Andrew du Plessis.

Replacements: 16 Martin van Niekerk, 17 Callie Janse van Vuuren, 18 Dylan Harlen, 19 Johan Venter, 20 Dian Badenhorst, 21 André Swarts, 22 Johan Nel.

Affies: 15 Eduan Keyter, 14 Tian Schmullian, 13 Jurie Linde, 12 Phillip Orffer, 11 Thys van Wyk, 10 Dawie Venter, 9 Ivan van Zyl (captain), 8 Salmon van Huyssteen, 7 Calvonn Allison, 6 Derik Bezuidenhout, 5 RG Snyman, 4 Hanrich Vreken, 3 WP Eloff, 2 Francois Steyn, 1 DP du Plessis.

Replacements: 16 Louis Venter, 17 Wihan Barnard, 18 Tiaan Meintjies, 19 Juandré Slabbert, 20 Carlo van Nysschem, 21 Marchand van den Heever, 22 Morné van Staden

Referee: Jaco Kotze (Free State Referees' Society)

Results Down the Years

1953: Grey won 3-0

1954: Grey won 9-3

1955: Grey won 19-0

1956: Grey won 6-6*

1957: Grey won 22-0

1958: Grey won 14-6

1959: Grey won 14-3

1966: Grey won 25-11

1967: Grey won 22-0

1970: Grey won 16-11

1971: Grey won 19-0

1973: Grey won 10-3

1974: Grey won 14-6

1992: Grey won 24-3

1993: Draw 26-26

1994: Grey won 13-6

1995: Grey won 37-13

1996: Affies won 25-3

1997: Grey won 19-9

1998: Draw 23-23

1999: Grey won 17-13

2000: Draw 17-17

2001: Draw 12-12

2002: Grey won 46-21

2003: Grey won 33-3

2004: Grey won 32-29

2005: Affies won 27-20

2006: Affies won 18-13

2007: Grey won 47-10

2008: Grey won 31-12

2009: Grey won 30-13

2010: Grey won 23-6

2011: Grey won 16-11

2012: Affies won 35-29

2013: Affies won 37-31