Bulls tighten grip at the top as race for SA Rugby U20 play-offs intensifies

The race for places in the SA Rugby U20 Cup semi-finals intensified over the weekend as the Vodacom Bulls, Fidelity ADT Golden Lions and Toyota Cheetahs all secured valuable round eight victories.

Playing on Friday, the Bulls produced the most dominant performance of the round, defeating Hollywoodbets Sharks GEN 59-7 in Pretoria to further strengthen their position at the top of the standings.

Also on Friday, the Cheetahs collected a crucial bonus-point win in a 14-try thriller against the Leopards U20 in Bloemfontein, which ended 56-42 in their favour.

Meanwhile, the Lions continued their impressive campaign with a 26-12 victory over the DHL Stormers Bolts at 10bet Ellis Park.

The Bulls consolidated first place and increased their tally to 37 log points, while the Lions strengthened their hold on second spot with 34 points. The Bolts are third on 29, followed by the Sharks (16), Cheetahs (14) and the Leopards on eight points.

Kicking off the round eight proceedings, the Lions laid the foundation for victory with a dominant first-half display in Johannesburg over the Bolts, racing into a 19-point lead before the visitors from Cape Town responded after the break.

Tries by Miguel Smith and Lindelani Nkambule, who scored twice, gave the Lions control before Grady Ngui sealed the result late in the contest. The visitors replied through RJ Davids and Jayden Brits, but never seriously threatened the Lions' advantage.

The Bulls showcased their title credentials with a ruthless nine-try performance over the Sharks GEN at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria, where they won 59-7 after leading by 26-7 at the halfway stage.

Four first-half tries, including one by Junior Bok Kebotile Maake, paved the way for an emphatic victory before the hosts added five more after the break. Ruben Groenewald enjoyed an outstanding day with the boot, converting seven tries. Junior Bok loose forward Wasi Vyambwera scored the Durbanites' solo try.

The highest-scoring match of the round saw the Cheetahs outlast a determined Leopards by 56-42 side in Bloemfontein. The hosts crossed for eight tries, while the visitors refused to go away and scored six of their own in a contest that produced 98 points.

The Cheetahs scored three tries to one before the break to lead 21-7 and they kicked on from there for a deserved home victory. For the winners, Bendre Vermaak scored twice while Heinz Stockenstrom succeeded with eight conversions, two more than Marno Greeff, who was also a try scorer for the team from Potch.

In next weekend’s penultimate round of league games, the Bulls face Cheetahs Saturday in Pretoria; the Sharks GEN take on Lions at home on Durban; while the Stormers Bolts clash with Leopards in Cape Town.

Scores

Fidelity ADT Golden Lions U20 26 (19), DHL Stormers U20 Bolts 12 (0)

Lions – Tries: Lindelani Nkambule (2), Miguel Smith, Grady Ngui. Conversions: Matthew Abbey (3).

Bolts – Tries: RJ Davids, Jayden Brits. Conversion: Rikus Pretorius.

Vodacom Bulls U20 59 (26), Hollywoodbets Sharks GEN 7 (0)

Bulls – Tries: Junaide Stuart, Kebotile Maake, Stefan McDonald, Brooklyn Newman, Jonathan Harding, Dylan Engelbrecht, Hendré Schoeman, Christiaan Grundling, Bongani Dlamini Conversions: Ruben Groenewald (7).

Sharks – Try: Wasi Vyambwera. Conversion: Jamal Abrahams.

Toyota Cheetahs U20 56 (21) Leopards U20 42 (7)

Cheetahs – Tries: Bendre Vermaak (2), Dian Venter, Bernard Wessels, Petrus Oberholzer, Bohlale Maphisa, Jade Muller, Anrich Scheffer. Conversions: Heinz Stockenstrom (8).

Leopards – Tries: David Ndala, Zuan Rautenbach, Raluano Ramano, Kian Rademeyer, GJ Steenberg, Marno Greeff. Conversions: Marno Greeff (6).

Meanwhile, Griquas and Eastern Province will contest the 2026 SA Rugby U21 Shield final after they both managed nail-biting semi-final victories on the road on Saturday.

The final will take place on Saturday at Otto du Plessis High School in Gqeberha, with kick-off scheduled for 2pm.

In Welkom, Griquas overcame a spirited late fightback from the Griffons to claim a 32-29 victory after leading 17-10 at half-time and in Wellington, EP survived a stirring second-half comeback from Boland to secure a 34-31 win after establishing a commanding 24-5 half-time lead.

The two play-off matches delivered two thrilling contests on Saturday, with both finalists forced to dig deep to secure hard-fought victories away from home.

In Welkom, the Griffons made a fast start through tries from Aiden Holtzhausen and Mvelo Ndwalane, while the Griffons stayed in touch thanks to a five-pointer from Rovaun van Niekerk. A penalty by Blane Marais helped Griquas take a seven-point, 17-10 advantage into the break.

The second half remained fiercely contested. Tries by Kwanda Mhlongo and Thailyn Rose, plus a further penalty from Marais, appeared to have done enough for Griquas, despite the disruption of a 20-minute red-card. The hosts mounted a dramatic late surge with tries from Keanu van Wyk, Qhamani James and Jumbo Kubheka but ultimately fell three points short as Griquas held on.

Eastern Province dominated the opening period against Boland in Wellington, crossing through Angelo Adams, Dewald Gerber and Christiaan van der Merwe, while fullback Lyle Meintjies added three conversions and an early penalty goal.

The hosts’ only first-half response came via a try from Rowen Jantjies to make the half-time score 24-5 in EP’s favour.

Boland responded strongly after the interval despite losing Jantjies to a yellow card shortly after the restart. A brace from Nathan Gous and tries by Craig van Rensburg and Ronaldo Koker brought the hosts back into contention, with Enrique Jephta adding three conversions.

However, a crucial try from Damian le Roux and a late Meintjies penalty goal proved enough to see Eastern Province through by the narrowest of margins.

Scores

Harmony Griffons 29 (10), Griquas 32 (17)

Griffons – Tries: Rovaun van Niekerk, Imaani Pemba, Keanu van Wyk, Qhamani James, Jumbo Kubheka. Conversions: Dean de Wee (2), Ronaldo Kiewiet.

Griquas – Tries: Aiden Holtzhausen, Mvelo Ndwalane, Kwanda Mhlongo, Thailyn Rose. Conversions: Blane Marais (3). Penalties: Marais (2).

Sanlam Boland 31 (5), Eastern Province 34 (24)

Boland – Tries: Rowen Jantjies, Craig van Rensburg, Nathan Gous (2), Ronaldo Koker. Conversions: Enrique Jephta (3).

EP – Tries: Angelo Adams, Dewald Gerber, Christiaan van der Merwe, Damian le Roux. Conversions: Lyle Meintjies (4). Penalties: Meintjies (2).