Griquas bounced back after their loss against the Bulls in their last encounter to convincingly beat a beefed up Lions team on Wednesday.
THOUGH the Tafel Lager Griquas didn’t move from their fourth spot of the Carling Currie Cup table, they still managed to pull off an impressive win over the Sigma Lions in their game at Tafel Lager Park on Wednesday afternoon.
The hosts were dominant throughout the game, and the 49-17 win was a fair reflection of what transpired on the field of play, with Griquas making the most of all their opportunities against the shell-shocked visitors from Gauteng.
Griquas were restrained initially by the Lions defence, and took a quarter-hour to break through and challenge the visitors’ three-point lead which they had gained early on when James Tedder slotted a penalty for a ruck infringement by Griquas.
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Munier Hartzenberg shimmied past the Lions defence and managed to dot down despite his tackler’s choke hold. Zander Du Plessis did what he was best known for and converted to take a 7-3 lead.
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Tafel Lager Griquas 49 – 17 Sigma Lions #TafelLagerGriquas #TheChampionWithin #CurrieCup pic.twitter.com/hkTSbmVOUm
— Griquas Rugby (@GriquasRugby) March 16, 2022
In the early stages of play there were times when the Lions pinned Griquas in their half and it looked as though they may be rewarded with a try or penalty but their pressure was handled well by a dogged Griquas defence that refused to budge, and it was in fact the hosts that, at about the half-hour mark, that extended their lead when Johan Mulder dove under the uprights for their second try.
The ever reliable Zander du Plessis made no mistake with the tricky conversion.
The Lions upped their defensive effort and managed to restrain the dangerous-looking home team, keeping the scoreline to a respectable 14-3 at the break.
But soon after the break, Griquas shifted gear and dismantled the visiting team through a series of well-worked tries.
The embattled Lions dug deep in the 63rd minute, staving off a Griquas onslaught and managing to turn the tables on their hosts when James Mollentze broke free of the tackles and dashed to the Griquas tryline unchecked to dot down. Tedder converted to take the score to 35-10.
This boosted their confidence and soon after Divan Rossouw broke through the Griquas defence to score another try. Tedder converted successfully to stand the board at 35-17.
And this was the end of the Lions bothering the scorers.
Rynhardt Jonker crossed the Lions whitewash and Du Plessis converted effortlessly to take the tally to 42-17, before Hanru Sirgel added his name to the scorecard, giving Du Plessis yet another shot at goal, which he nailed for the home side’s 49-17 win.
