18 October 2026
The Vodacom Bulls U20 secured a convincing 49-29 victory over the Fidelity ADT Golden Lions U20 on Saturday to lock in a home semi-final against the Hollywoodbets U20 Gen at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday 24 October 2026.
The Pretoria outfit survived a fierce second-half fightback from the hosts to finish top of the log. The bonus-point win guarantees them home-ground advantage at Loftus Versfeld for a mouth-watering playoff clash against the Hollywoodbets Sharks U20 Gen, with a potential home final also on the horizon.
The visitors opened their account early when Kebotile Maake crashed over the whitewash after just four minutes. Ruben Pienaar added the extras before the Lions responded with a solitary penalty from the boot of Matthew Abbey.
The Bulls' structural dominance began to tell as the first half progressed. Bongani Dlamini stretched the lead with a well-worked try, before Lions flanker Zenkosi Mthiyane was sent to the sin bin for a cynical infringement.
Capitalising on the numerical advantage, Pienaar darted through a gap to score his side's third try. The clinical flyhalf converted his own score, sending the Bulls into the halftime break with a comfortable 21-10 lead.
The Johannesburg side caught the Bulls cold immediately after the restart with a blistering tactical shift. Lian Terblanche crossed for a quick-fire brace of tries within three minutes, completely shifting the momentum.
Discipline unravelled for the Bulls as Juliun Cosmo and Jon Hobson were both shown yellow cards in quick succession. The Lions took full advantage of the two-man overlap, hitting the front through tries from Grady Ngui and Adriano Jackson to lead 29-21.
Both coaching staffs emptied their benches at the three-quarter mark to inject fresh energy into the engine rooms. The tactical substitutions settled the Pretoria side's flagging set-piece.
The Bulls pack regained their physical ascendancy at the breakdown to launch a lethal counter-offensive. Migael Turner and Brooklyn Newman dotted down in rapid succession to wrestle back the lead for the visitors.
The Lions' hopes of an upset vanished when Mthiyane received a second yellow card, resulting in a full red card. Up against fourteen men, Leskin Samuels crashed over to put the result beyond doubt.
Pienaar put the final gloss on the scoreboard, crossing for his second try and maintaining his flawless kicking record to book a blockbuster north-south knockout derby in Pretoria.
Scorers:
Fidelity ADT Golden Lions U20: Tries: Lian Terblanche (2), Adriano Jackson, Grady Ngui. Conversions: Matthew Abbey (3). Penalties: Matthew Abbey.
Vodacom Bulls U20: Tries: Ruben Pienaar (2), Kebotile Maake, Bongani Dlamini, Brooklyn Newman, Leskin Samuels, Migael Turner. Conversions: Ruben Pienaar (7).
Teams:
Fidelity ADT Golden Lions U20: 1 David Hayidakis, 2 Thapelo Mphela, 3 Meyer Opperman, 4 Lian Terblanche, 5 James Schnetler, 6 Grady Ngui, 7 Luke Cannon, 8 Risima Khosa, 9 Elgernon Meyer, 10 Matthew Abbey, 11 Zenkosi Mthiyane, 12 Mcmillen Mongwana, 13 Likhona Kepe, 14 Adriano Jackson, 15 Alzeadon Felix. Replacements: 16 Keenan Myners, 17 Andre Poulton, 18 Miguel Smith, 19 Thinus Oosthuizen, 20 Jaythen Orange, 21 Sherwin Buys, 22 Rekkie Gerber, 23 Luke Kent.
Vodacom Bulls U20: 1 Duwan Potgieter, 2 Jon Hobson, 3 Bongani Dlamini, 4 Migael Turner, 5 Heinrich Theron, 6 Kebotile Maake, 7 Thomas Beling, 8 Juliun Cosmo, 9 Hendré Schoeman, 10 Ruben Pienaar, 11 Leskin Samuels, 12 Xhanti Pongolo, 13 Marnus Rademeyer, 14 Riwan Van Aswegen, 15 Liyema Nela. Replacements: 16 Stefan McDonald, 17 Aphiwe Shelembe, 18 Luan Van Der Berg, 19 Dian Smal, 20 Chinedu Amadi, 21 Brooklyn Newman, 22 Viaan Mentoor, 23 Raphael Ajibade.