Griquas too strong for spirited Kavaliers

A pulsating SA Cup semi-final saw the Suzuki Griquas outplay the Sanlam Boland Kavaliers 59-35 on Saturday at the Suzuki Stadium in Kimberley.

Last year's finalists will once again contest for the SA Cup title in Kimberley when the Griquas host the defending champions, the Airlink Pumas, who beat the Toyota Cheetahs 42-36 on Friday.

The second SA Cup semi-final lived up to expectations with five tries being scored in the opening 20 minutes.

Racing to a 14-point lead, Griquas stunned the visitors through a blitzkrieg, leading to Cameron Hufke and Dylan Maart dotting down with George Whitehead slotting both conversions.

This lead, however, was short-lived when the experience and creativity of the Kavaliers led to three tries from James Tedder, Jade Stighling and Domenic Smit. Tedder succeeded with all three conversion attempts, handing the visiting side the lead.

The home side would have the final say in the opening half when referee Dylen November awarded a penalty try to Griquas, levelling matters on the scoreboard as the players headed into the sheds.

Both sides came out in the second stanza firing on all cylinders with the home side calling the shots through passages of relentless attacking phases, leading to a try for Marco de Witt.

A brilliant individual passage 10 metres away from the tryline by Jurick Lewis saw the inside centre canter in for what proved to be the only points for the Kavaliers in the second half.

It was a series of errors and missed tackles, leading to the Griquas capitalising and building a substantial lead heading into the final 20 minutes of the match.

Tries for Sako Makata and Lourens Oosthuizen deep in the second half and with Whitehead's accuracy off the tee, aided the home side in keeping the scoreboard pressure on the men from Wellington as they booked their spot in the SA Cup final.