Vodacom Bulls consolidate top spot in SA Rugby U20 Cup

The race for top honours in the SA Rugby U20 Cup intensified in round six as the Vodacom Bulls U20 and DHL Stormers Bolts both secured valuable away victories over the past weekend to place them at the top of the league standings.

The young Bulls produced an impressive attacking display to beat the Toyota Cheetahs U20 45-28 in Bloemfontein, while the Bolts overturned a 10-point half-time deficit to defeat the Leopards U20 in Potchefstroom.

The Bulls U20 led 17-14 at half-time after a tightly contested first half in Bloemfontein but they turned on the style in the second stanza and eventually crossed for seven tries as they powered to a convincing win at Toyota Stadium on Friday.

The visitors made a fast start, with hooker Ethan van Dyk scoring after just three minutes before wing Riwan van Aswegen added a second. The Cheetahs responded through centre Duncan Basson and flanker Mokgaotsi Mosiane, while Bulls prop Duwan Potgieter also dotted down to give the visitors a narrow three-point half-time lead.

The Bulls seized control after the break. Centre Marnus Rademeyer crossed early in the second half before lock Dian Smal and replacement forward Dylan Engelbrecht added further tries.

Flyhalf Viaan Mentoor, a former SA U18 ‘A’ representative, rounded off an influential performance with a late five-pointer as the Pretoria side surged clear.

The Cheetahs continued to battle and were rewarded with second-half tries from replacement Kgolagano Legodi and fullback Heinz Stockenstrom, who also landed all four conversions but they were unable to contain the Bulls' attacking momentum.

In Potchefstroom, the visiting Stormers Bolts produced a composed second-half comeback to overturn a 10-point half-time deficit and claim a 28-17 victory over the Leopards U20 at Olen Park on Saturday.

The home side looked firmly in control during the opening period. Centre Handre Maree opened the scoring before hooker Hubert Winterbach crossed for a second try. Flyhalf Marno Greeff converted both scores and added a penalty goal on the stroke of halftime to hand the Leopards a deserved 17-7 advantage, with the Stormers’ only first-half reply coming through fullback Meyer Prinsloo, who scored and converted his own try.

The Cape side emerged transformed after the interval. Replacement back Wihan Kotze struck almost immediately after half-time, with Dawid Badenhorst converting to reduce the deficit. Wing Pretorius Ekeji then finished off another attack before Prinsloo added the extras to put the Stormers ahead.

Any hopes of a Leopards response were ended eight minutes from time when replacement Sanele Simelane crossed for the visitors' fourth try, with Prinsloo's conversion sealing an impressive comeback victory.

Following the latest round of games, the Vodacom Bulls U20 lead the standings on 25 points, followed by the DHL Stormers Bolts (19). The Fidelity ADT Lions and Sharks U20 GEN – who play their postponed match on Friday – follow next on 18 and nine points respectively, with the Leopards (7) and Cheetahs (3) completing the standings.

Friday sees the Bulls U20 travel to Johannesburg to take on the Lions at 12pm and later that same day the Cheetahs U20 tackle Stormers Bolts from 2pm in Bloemfontein. The Sharks GEN and Leopards U20 complete the weekend fixtures on Saturday, at 1pm in Durban.

Scores

Leopards U20 (17) 17, DHL Stormers U20 Bolts 28 (7)

Leopards – Tries: Handre Maree, Hubert Winterbach. Conversions: Marno Greeff (2). Penalty: Greeff.

Stormers Bolts – Tries: Meyer Prinsloo, Wihan Kotze, Pretorius Ekeji, Sanele Simelane. Conversions: Prinsloo (3), Dawid Badenhorst.

Toyota Cheetahs U20 28 (14), Vodacom Bulls U20 45 (17)

Cheetahs – Tries: Duncan Basson, Mokgaotsi Mosiane, Kgolagano Legodi, Heinz Stockenstrom. Conversions: Stockenstrom (4).

Bulls – Tries: Ethan van Dyk, Riwan van Aswegen, Duwan Potgieter, Marnus Rademeyer, Dian Smal, Dylan Engelbrecht, Viaan Mentoor. Conversions: Mentoor (2), Ruben Pienaar (3).

In the SA Rugby U21 Shield competition, a full round of four fixtures was completed over the weekend, with Griquas, the Harmony Griffons, Boland, and Eastern Province all on winning side.

Griffons defeated Valke 59-25, Boland trumped SWD 72-26 in a dominant display, while EP got the better of Border in Saturday’s third fixture, winning by a margin of 41-21. Sunday’s clash between Griquas and Pumas ended 38-28 in favour of the home side in Kimberley.

So, after the weekend’s action, EP leads the Southern section on 15 points, followed by Boland (11), SWD (8), and Border (1 point). In the Northern section, the Griffons lead the way on 15 points after three wins, followed by Limpopo and Pumas (6 each), Griquas (5) and Valke (1 point).

This coming weekend sees EP take on Boland in Gqeberha, Valke welcome Griquas to Kempton Park, Pumas host Limpopo in Nelspruit and Border entertain SWD in Mdantsane.