The league stage of the SA Rugby Under-21 Cup competition concluded over the past weekend, with the four-semi-finalist confirmed for the coming weekend’s two playoff matches.
The Vodacom Bulls and Hollywoodbets Sharks will contest the first semi-final, at 14h00 on Friday at the Loftus B-field in Pretoria, and the following day in Cape Town, defending champions DHL Western Province face the Fidelity ADT Lions in a 13h30 kick-off at City Park.
WP finished in pole position on 43 league points following their 54-5 demolition of the Toyota Cheetahs last Friday at City Park. The Junior Bok-laden hosts were already 19-0 up at the break, and they scored eight tries and seven conversions, compared to a solo try by the visitors.
Junior Springbok midfielder Gino Cupido was one of the standout players for WP as he dotted down three times, while his SA U20 colleague Dominic Malgas also scored a try and four conversions.
The Bulls secured second spot on the log (36 points) when they edged their southern neighbours, the Lions, by 40-36 in a close-fought encounter at Ellis Park on Friday. The youngsters from Pretoria were 26-17 ahead by halftime, and had to withstand a fierce comeback by the hosts in the second stanza, just holding out for a four-point win in the end.
The Bulls managed to cross for six tries, of which five were converted, while the Lions managed five tries, four conversions and a penalty goal. Former Junior Bok flyhalf Liam Koen slotted five conversions for the visitors, while incumbent Junior Bok fullback Gilermo Mentoe scored twice for the Lions.
In the weekend’s third encounter staged at Olen Park in Potchefstroom, the Leopards failed in their attempt to win their last league match when the Hollywoodbets Sharks defeated them 40-12, after the team from KZN had a 14-5 halftime advantage.
The Durbanites eventually scored six tries and five conversions, with fly-half Luan Gilliomee scoring a try and slotting five conversions, while the Leopards registered two tries and a conversion.
WP finished top on 43 points, followed by the Bulls and Sharks, both on 36 points, while the Lions ended on 35 points. The Cheetahs finished fifth on 15 and the Leopards bottom on nine points.
SA U21 Shield final to be staged in White River
The Pumas and Border Bulldogs will contest the final of the SA Rugby U21 Shield at the White River Rugby Club north of Mbombela after they both won their respective semi-final matches the past weekend. The decider will kick off at 13h00 on Saturday.
The Pumas defeated Harmony Griffons 41-14 in their playoff match staged at the Down Touch Investments Stadium in Welkom, while Border won their away semi-final 55-46 against Sanlam Boland in Robertson.
SA U19 Cup semi-finalists determined
Meanwhile, the SA U19 Cup league phase also concluded over the weekend, with the top four confirmed for two semi-finals this weekend, when the Vodacom Bulls will host the Hollywoodbets Sharks at 11h30 on the Loftus B-field on Friday, while DHL Western Province are home to the Fidelity ADT Lions at City Park on Saturday, with kick-off also scheduled for 11h30.
Two matches were decided last Friday, with WP coasting to a 76-12 victory over the Toyota Cheetahs in Cape Town, while the Vodacom Bulls came out tops in their derby with the Lions by 47-19 in Johannesburg.
The Leopards came close to upsetting the Hollywoodbets Sharks in Potch on Saturday, which would have been their first win of the campaign. Instead, it was the KwaZulu-Natalians who edged the game 36-34.
Following the last round of league games, the Bulls ended with five wins in a row to give them 25 points. WP ended second on 16 points from their three wins, and they were followed by the title holders, the Lions, also on 16, while the Sharks ended on 15 points.
The two winners will battle it out in the final on 18 October for the title.