WP clinch Cape cracker
14 Aug 2010
JON CARDINELLI reports on WP’s 15-12 win over the Bulls in a bone-crunching and unforgettable derby at Newlands on Saturday.
The brutality of this contest was beautiful. Each collision appealed to the sick delight of the crowd, thousands of ‘ooohs’ quickly succeeded by a collective cry for more blood. This was Currie Cup combat at its best, as while the handling of both teams was below standard, the desire and intensity was spectacular.
Province enjoyed the majority of the possession in the first half, but the Bulls produced an inspirational display of defence to keep the hosts tryless. There were times when the Bully Boys lost their cool, the sin-binning of Gerhard van den Heever being a prime example. Amazingly, the visitors rallied together and kept a rampant WP at bay, finishing the period of sanction without conceding a solitary point.
Willem de Waal began this fixture in impressive form, and it surprised to see Anton van Zyl turning down kickable penalties as the Bulls repeatedly infringed. A promising movement from a set-piece deep in Bulls’ territory too often culminated in a knock on. You have to tip your hat to the Bulls defenders, but the fact that WP showed such a poor return for their first half possession was criminal.
Jacques-Louis Potgieter slotted the equaliser right after half-time as the Bulls played themselves back into the game. Tactically, Potgieter kicked cleverly, using the swirling wind to torment the WP back three. He was poorly supported in this facet, however. Zane Kirchner and scrumhalf Ruan Snyman failed to make telling kicking contributions, and the latter was under plenty of pressure at the base of the ruck.
WP did manage to penetrate the Bulls’ defence on occasion, Nick Koster’s incisive run after a well-taken lineout bringing the Newlands faithful to their feet. But poor hands cost them possession for the umpteenth time. WP’s lineouts were uncharacteristically inconsistent which also resulted in missed opportunities in Bulls’ territory. They held a slender 6-3 lead at the break when they should have been at least 10 points ahead.
But the Bulls were guilty of their own blunders, a decision to kick a penalty for touch backfiring horribly. Their maul from the lineout was marched back and possession conceded. This time WP’s defensive giants stood tall. That shaggy-haired monster, Duane Vermeulen, delivered some ball-jarring hits, as did former Blue Bull Frikkie Welsh.
A record Currie Cup crowd of over 47 000 were made to wait until the final quarter for the decisive blow. De Waal held his nerve to kick a 45m penalty before Potgieter missed one and then goaled another to leave the score at 12-9 with 10 minutes to play. De Waal’s fifth penalty was succeeded by another Potgieter goal, but that one miss proved to be the difference as WP played themselves into Bulls’ territory and killed the clock.
The result sees WP maintaining their unbeaten record and top position on the Currie Cup log. Their U19 and U21 teams also remain unbeaten after downing the Bulls juniors earlier on Saturday.
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354 Comments
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16 Aug 2010, 13:35 pm
@Big Hit(Big Hit)-350: correct BG this is why i feel till they resolve it in the IRB , Saru should be doing their work till then , and the fact is yes in the TRI nations that does not fall under that test window things are different
however when we choose players that do fall under that window we should be doing whats right
Steyn is pain by the french club and not by SARU
thus SAru should adhere to the rules under which that player falls
16 Aug 2010, 13:36 pm
@sharks_lover(sharks_lover)-351: pain =paid
16 Aug 2010, 20:37 pm
what a kak game !! Bulls spoilt and nearly won the game thanks to Jonker who is not a bad ref but should have sorted out the spoiling tactics . The Bulls were offsides the whole game and deserved a few more yellow cards ………all credit vto nthe Bulls they hung in and showed a lot of guts !!
But hey , who cares its always nice to get one over the Bulls .
Go Province ………..Sharks is going to be tough , hopefully Kaplan gets the whistle ot Jason Jafte .
Sharks looking good but think WP will win …. good ref will make for a good game .
16 Aug 2010, 22:12 pm
The bulls only have themselves to blame for that defeat as their discipline was bloody pathetic the amount of penalties they gave away was shocking,their lineouts were poor their scrums average their backline play was non-existant and they have one of the fastest wings in the country in vd heever and the ball never goes to him what a waste.I hope stegmann returns soon because we really miss him.That was an opportunity missed to win at newlands one they might regret.
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