The Suzuki Griquas secured a thrilling 21–15 victory over Black Lion, overturning a second-half deficit and overcoming a severe disciplinary crisis to seal a hard-fought win.
The first half was a tense, low-scoring affair with both defences holding firm for the opening half-hour.
Suzuki Griquas finally broke the deadlock in the 33rd minute with a well-worked try from Thomas Nel, which was promptly converted by Liam Koen.
Black Lion responded almost immediately, striking back just before the interval through a Tornike Kakhoidze try. With the conversion successful, the sides went into the half-time break locked in a 7–7 stalemate.
The second half exploded into action with a flurry of tactical substitutions and immediate disciplinary drama. The Griquas were dealt a heavy blow in the 49th minute when Mango Ngundue was shown a yellow card.
Black Lion capitalised on their numerical advantage just a minute later, with Akaki Tabutsadze crossing the whitewash to grab the lead. A successful Black Lion penalty in the 56th minute extended their advantage to 15–7.
Despite the disciplinary setbacks and heavy squad rotations, the South African side showed incredible resilience. In the 60th minute, replacement Ntobeko Shezi powered over for a crucial try to ignite the comeback.
Danrich Visagie added the conversion, narrowing the deficit to just one point and swinging the momentum squarely back to the Griquas.
The Griquas put the game out of reach in the 73rd minute when Connor Mahoney scored their third try. Visagie’s flawless kicking added the extras once more, successfully sealing the 21–15 victory as the final whistle blew.
Scorers:
Black Lion: Tries: Tornike Kakhoidze, Akaki Tabutsadze. Conversion: Davit Imnadze. Penalty: Davit Imnadze.
Suzuki Griquas: Tries: Connor Mahoney, Ntobeko Shezi, Thomas Nel. Conversions: Danrich Visagie (2), Liam Koen.
Teams:
Black Lion: 15 Luka Tsirekidze, 14 Akaki Tabutsadze, 13 Luka Tsirekidze, 12 Tornike Kakhoidze, 11 Otari Metreveli, 10 Davit Imnadze, 9 Giorgi Spanderashvili, 8 Potu Leavasa, 7 Lasha Tsikhistavi, 6 Luka Narsia, 5 Michael Curry, 4 Vladimeri Chachanidze, 3 Nikoloz Khatiashvili, 2 Irakli Kvatadze, 1 Dato Abdushelishvili. Replacements: 16 Vakhtang Jincharadze, 17 Giorgi Mamaiashvili, 18 Giorgi Kimutsadze, 19 Mikheili Babunashvili, 20 Demuri Epremidze, 21 Otar Giorgadze, 22 Temur Dzodzuashvili, 23 Demetre Devdariani.
Suzuki Griquas: 15 Stefan Coetzee, 14 Connor Mahoney, 13 Tom Nel, 12 Damian Markus, 11 Sako Makata, 10 Liam Koen, 9 Caleb Abrahams, 8 Dillon Smith, 7 Carel van der Merwe, 6 Phumzile Magondwana, 5 Derik Pretorius (c), 4 Lungi Mbiko, 3 Johan Louw, 2 Janus Venter, 1 Corne Lavagna. Replacements: 16 Willem van der Heever, 17 Ebune Ngundue, 18 Ntobeko Shezi, 19 Marco de Witt, 20 Ntsika Fisanti, 21 Jack Hart, 22 Danrich Visagie, 23 Luke Burger.
Recent Comments