Tries galore in Nelspruit
The tournament is taking place at the iconic Mbombela Stadium in Nelspruit and produced some outstanding results.
No less than 153 tries were scored in the men's tournament.
A number of results again proved why there are no big names in Sevens, with the likes of SWD, Griffons and Border showing some big names teams that they are no pushovers.
With Springbok Sevens Academy coach Marius Schoeman and his assistant coach Paul Delport in attendance a number of players showed that they can play at a higher level, but in the end it was good team play that ruled the day.
The Leopards edged past the Blue Bulls in pool A due to a better points differential after their match ended 19-all. Both teams progressed to the Cup quarterfinals at the expense of Border and Boland.
In pool B, the Sharks won their first match against Eastern Province by one point, only to lose to Western Province by the same margin. They were shocked by Griquas in their final match and failed to advance to the Cup competition on Saturday.
EP, who were beaten by WP in the final play of their match, slipped into second and Cup contention by points' difference. EP will again look at Jacques Fick, who contributed 39 to end the day as leading point's scorer in the men's tournament.
Pool C saw South Western Districts top the pool, courtesy of a 17-14 win over the Golden Lions. SWD did drop a result to the Pumas (Highveld), but when the hosts lost to the Golden Lions, they slipped into third on the log and out of Cup contention.
Pool D saw Griffons and Pumas (Lowveld) qualify. Selvyn Davids scored seven tries for the Welkom team to lead the try scoring stakes for the day. Free State finished pool play without a win, with Limpopo Blue Bulls also not advancing to the Cup.
In the men's Cup quarterfinals the Leopards face the Golden Lions, Western Province take on the Griffons, SWD take on the Blue Bulls and Pumas (Lowveld) host Eastern Province.
Day One Results:
Pool A: Leopards 34 v Border 7; Blue Bulls 40 v Boland 7; Blue Bulls 26 v Border 19; Leopards 33 v Boland 0; Blue Bulls 19 v Leopards 19; Boland 33 v Border 31.
Pool B: Sharks 22 v Eastern Province 21; Western Province 38 v Griquas 10; Western Province 22 v Sharks 21; Eastern Province 33 v Griquas 14; Western Province 19 v Eastern Province 15; Griquas 15 v Sharks 7
Pool C: SWD 17 v Golden Lions 14; Falcons 17 v Pumas (HV) 7; Golden Lions 35 v Falcons 24; Pumas HV 33 v SWD 17; SWD 33 v Falcons 5; Golden Lions 17 v Pumas HV 14.
Pool D: Griffons 36 v Free State 19; Pumas (LV) 12 v Limpopo Bulls 10; Pumas (LV) 22 v Griffons 14; Limpopo 24 v Free State 7; Griffons 19 v Limpopo Bulls 0; Pumas LV 22 v Free State 17.
