The Vodacom Bulls U20s had to dig very deep to start the defence of their SA Rugby Under-20 Cup with a win last weekend, while last season's runners-up, DHL WP, came up short and the Lions recorded a massive victory.
The Vodacom Bulls travelled to Potchefstroom where the Leopards U20s pushed them close, with the team from Pretoria winning by 31-26, in the end, to start the season with a bonus-point victory.
Juann Else, a Junior Bok in 2022, and Corne Beets scored a brace each, contributing four of the Vodacom Bulls' five tries, while the hosts got two bonus points for losing by seven points or less, and scoring four tries.
In Cape Town, the Cell C Sharks beat their U20 counterparts from DHL WP by 31-19 for another full-house of points which put them second on the log after the opening round of matches.
Bryce Calvert scored three of the KwaZulu-Natalians' five tries, with the hosts scoring three five-pointers, including two by last year's SA Schools front rankers Zachary Porthen and Luca Bakkes.
The third match of the weekend belonged to the Lions U20s as they outclassed their neighbours, the Valke, in Vanderbijlpark, by 73-3.
The men from Johannesburg scored 11 tries without reply, with Keagan Smith grabbing a hat-trick and Asemahle Nongogo and RF Schoeman grabbing a brace each.
The second round will see the Vodacom Bulls host DHL WP, the Leopards will travel to Johannesburg to face the Lions, and the Toyota Cheetahs - who had a bye last weekend - will open their account with a home clash against the Valke.