Supporters in Johannesburg and Cape Town were made to worry 1st before smiling as the Emirates Lions and DHL Stormers put away their Australasian opponents in an exciting round of Vodacom Super Rugby action.
The Cell C Sharks, in their 2nd match of their tour Down Under, also showed a lot of character and played with vigour, but in the end it wasn’t enough against a fired-up Hurricanes side in Wellington.
The table-toppers from New Zealand beat the Durbanites by 32 / 24 on Saturday morning but with less than 10 minutes to go, the result was still in the balance.
On Saturday afternoon, both the Emirates Lions and DHL Stormers had to fight their way back into contention after listless 1st-half performances.
The Gautengers trialled by 20 / 3 at the break, but played sublime rugby in the 2nd half and in the end beat the Highlanders by 28 / 23 in a very exciting match.
The excitement levels were not as high in Cape Town, where the DHL Stormers overturned a 16 / 9 halftime deficit into a 25 / 24 victory over the Australian Conference leaders, the Brumbies.
The 1st penalty goal of the match by Demetri Catrakilis, who kicked 20 points for the DHL Stormers, saw him move to 28 consecutive successful kicks at goal this season.
However, Catrakilis missed the next one, which would’ve seen him improve the record to 29. As it stands, the DHL Stormers flyhalf now shares the record with former Capetonian pivot Peter Grant (this is since 2002).
The Vodacom Bulls and Toyota Cheetahs had byes this weekend.
Hurricanes (14) 32 / 24 (10) Cell C Sharks:
The Cell C Sharks delivered one of their best performances of the season, but still came up short against the table-topping Hurricanes in Wellington on Saturday morning, going down by 32 / 24.
The ‘Canes scored 11 points in the final 7 minutes to deny the Cell C Sharks a famous victory. In the end, the KwaZulu-Natalians didn’t even get a bonus-point for their efforts, something they certainly deserved.
The home team scored 4 tries to 3, with Bismarck du Plessis, Odwa Ndungane and S’bura Sithole dotting down for the Cell C Sharks.
The visitors played with massive passion and really got stuck into the Hurricanes, but the home team’s poise and calmness under pressure probably pulled this one through for them.
The New Zealand leg of their Australasian tour is now something of the past and if the Cell C Sharks can build on this performance, they could very well taste victory in Australia.
Scorers:
Hurricanes:
- Tries: Cory Jane (1), Conrad Smith (1), Jeremy Thrush (1), Reggie Goodes (1)
- Conversions: James Marshall (3)
- Penalties: James Marshall (2)
Cell C Sharks:
- Tries: Bismarck du Plessis (1), Odwa Ndungane (1), S’bura Sithole (1)
- Conversions: Francois Steyn (3)
- Penalties: Francois Steyn (1)
Emirates Lions (3) 28 / 23 (20) Highlanders:
A stirring 2nd-half performance was enough for the Emirates Lions to record their 7th victory of the season when they beat the Highlanders by 28 / 23 at Emirates Airline Park in Johannesburg on Saturday afternoon.
After “losing” the 1st half 20 / 3, with the Highlanders crossing for 2 tries, the home team “won” the 2nd half 25 / 3. This was built on yet another dominant scrum performance, while they also stepped up their defence after the break and played with a lot of speed.
The Emirates Lions’ dominance in the 2nd half was huge. They crossed for 3 tries in the final 40 minutes, by Jaco Kriel (flank), Courtnall Skosan (wing) and Harold Vorster (centre), while Elton Jantjies (flyhalf) added 10 points with the boot.
It was the Highlanders’ 1st tour match and also their 1st defeat to a South African team this season, while the Emirates Lions equalled their best-ever season performance with their 7th win of 2015 – they also achieved that last year.
Scorers:
Emirates Lions:
- Tries: Jaco Kriel (1), Courtnall Skosan (1), Harold Vorster (1)
- Conversions: Elton Jantjies (2)
- Penalties: Marnitz Boshoff (1), Elton Jantjies (2)
Highlanders:
- Tries: Gareth Evans (1), Malakai Fekitoa (1)
- Conversions: Lima Sopoaga (2)
- Penalties: Lima Sopoaga (1)
- Drop Goals: Lima Sopoaga (1), Ben Smith (1)
DHL Stormers (9) 25 / 24 (16) Brumbies:
The DHL Stormers will be the 1st to admit it wasn’t their best performance, but they still went back to the top of the South African Conference with a well-deserved 25 / 24 victory over the Brumbies at DHL Newlands in Cape Town on Saturday afternoon.
Yet again built on the platform provided by an all-conquering scrum, the DHL Stormers had the visitors on the backfoot for most of the afternoon. But the home team will bemoan some silly mistakes and a less-than-perfect lineout which allowed the Brumbies to keep the score board ticking over, to such an extent that the men from ACT led by 16 / 3 after 30 minutes.
The DHL Stormers, thanks mainly to a masterful kicking display by Demetri Catrakilis, who contributed 20 points with the boot, clawed their way back into the match. Schalk Burger scored a converted try on the hour mark to put the home team in front for the 1st time in the match (22 / 16).
The lead was but by 3 points but restored to 6 points when Catrakilis slotted his 1st drop-goal of the season. The Brumbies got their 2nd try with 10 minutes to go through David Pocock, but the easy conversion by Christian Lealiifano hit the upright and the DHL Stormers hung on for a hard-fought win.
Scorers:
DHL Stormers:
- Tries: Schalk Burger (1)
- Conversions: Demetri Catrakilis (1)
- Penalties: Demetri Catrakilis (5)
- Drop Goals: Demetri Catrakilis (1)
Brumbies:
- Tries: Joe Tomane (1), David Pocock (1)
- Conversions: Christian Lealiifano (1)
- Penalties: Cristian Lealiifano (3), Jesse Mogg (1)