U13 Day 3 Results: East & West on Top
Eastern Province held their nerve in a nail-biting match against the Blue Bulls to win 29-17, while Western Province defeated the Golden Lions 31-5.
Eastern Province delivered a fine performance on attack and defence against the Blue Bulls to register a well-deserved 29-17 victory. The first half was tight as the teams entered the break at 10-10, but the Eastern Cape outfit broke away in the second half with three successive tries as they snuffed out the gaps in the defence. They also showed great commitment on defence to shut out the Pretoria side, whose only points in the half were a try on the final whistle.
Western Province also produced a quality display against the Golden Lions with their forwards and backs combining well to steer the team to a 31-5 victory. The Johannesburg side scored first, but Western Province showed patience on attack and took the ball through phases, while they also showed innovation and skill on attack to score five tries. Their defence was equally effective as they prevented the Golden Lions from adding to their points tally.
In the other matches, KwaZulu-Natal defeated the Griffons 34-5, Griquas outplayed Border Country Districts 94-0, the Valke beat the Leopards 20-14, the Free State registered a 41-31 victory against the Pumas, South Western Districts pipped Limpopo 24-22 and Boland defeated Border 32-22.
KwaZulu-Natal used their speed smartly in their clash against the Griffons as they spread the ball wide throughout the match, while their players navigated their way through and around the defence. This effective game plan earned them six tries, with wing Ntando Zwane scoring three of them, while they produced a solid defensive effort to limit the Griffons to a single try for a 34-5 victory.
Griquas registered the biggest score of the day as they ran riot on attack against Border Country Districts to cross the try-line 16 times, while they shut out the Eastern Cape side to register a comprehensive 94-0 victory.
The clash between the Valke and Leopards was tight as both teams tried to use their big forwards to force their way onto the front foot. The Valke took a narrow 10-7 lead at the break, and two second-half tries to only one by the Leopards earned them a 20-14 victory.
Free State, meanwhile, survived a strong second-half fightback from the Pumas after leading 36-7 at the break to claim a 41-31 victory. The hosts were in fine form in the first half as they showed great skill on attack, which allowed them to score at will. The Pumas, however, remained composed and forced their way back into the game after the break to finish the match with five tries to the Free State’s seven. But this was too little too late.
South Western Districts staged a dramatic comeback from 12-0 down at the break to pip Limpopo 24-22 thanks to four second-half tries. Both sides finished the match with four tries compliments of their enterprising attack, but two successful conversions by South Western Districts to only one by the Limpopo side sealed the victory.
A last-gasp try by Namibia in the dying seconds earned them a 15-10 victory against Old Mutual Zimbabwe in their Test match, in what was a thrilling game as neither side gave an inch. Namibia scored twice in the first half, but Old Mutual Zimbabwe managed to sneak through to the try-line before the break to trail 10-5. They built on this in the opening minutes of the second half with a try in the corner to level the scores. Both teams tried hard to break the deadlock as the match progressed, and this paid off for Namibia in the last play as they sneaked over in the corner to win.
Boland delivered a strong second-half showing in a competitive match against Border to register a 32-22 victory. The teams entered the second half tied at 17-17, but the Western Cape side did well to convert their chances into points in the second half to increase their try tally to five, while Boland scored only four tries, three of which were by No.8 Zukisani Tom.
The last round will be on Friday, 14 July 2017.
Results, Day 3
Boland vs Border, 32-22
Eastern Province vs Blue Bulls, 29-17
Free State vs Pumas, 41-31
Griquas vs Border Country Districts, 94-0
KwaZulu-Natal vs Griffons, 34-5
Namibia vs Zimbabwe, 15-10
South Western Districts vs Limpopo, 24-22
Valke vs Leopards, 20-14
Western Province vs Golden Lions, 31-5
Previous Results
Day 1
Blue Bulls vs Free State, 45-12
Border vs Pumas, 18-15
Eastern Province vs Leopards, 32-15
Golden Lions vs KwaZulu-Natal, 23-14
Griquas vs Namibia, 21-19
Limpopo vs Boland, 15-14
South Western Districts vs Valke, 14-14
Western Province vs Griffons, 71-0
Zimbabwe vs Border Country Districts, 45-0
Day 2
Blue Bulls vs South Western Districts, 22-7
Boland vs Free State, 26-10
Eastern Province vs KwaZulu-Natal, 17-14
Golden Lions vs Border, 18-12
Griffons vs Pumas, 22-10
Leopards vs Zimbabwe, 66-7
Namibia vs Border Country Districts, 92-12
Valke vs Griquas, 36-7
Western Province vs Limpopo, 41-10
From SARU Communications
