GALLERY: Saru u-18 and u-16 Girls Weeks prove to be a success once again
The Cape side won 17-3 against the Blue Bulls to lower the Pretoria team’s flag for the first time during the Youth Weeks for Girls.
HOSTS Bidvest Waltons Golden Lions u-18 kept a clean sheet, along with DHL Western Province, during the South Africa Rugby Union (Saru) u-18 Girls Week.
The strong local team recorded three wins, including a five-try win over Boland, on the last day of the tournament.
The Cape side won 17-3 against the Blue Bulls to lower the Pretoria team’s flag for the first time during the Youth Weeks for Girls.
The u-16 WP team came to the Saru u-16 Girls Week undefeated in Johannesburg when the two national tournaments were recently concluded.
The u-16 team won all three matches and held sway over Border in their final match of the tournament played at Jeppe High School for Boys with a 41-12 win. The Blue Bulls and SWD Eagles teams played to an exciting draw earlier in their u-16 clash and were the only other teams who didn’t suffer defeats during the 24 matches of the tournament.
The two tournaments provided an exciting platform for 736 female players to showcase their talents.
SA Rugby Girls u-16 Week match summaries
The Leopards finished on a strong note by totally outgunning the Free State Cheetahs, scoring no less than nine tries in a 53-5 rout. The Bloem side did score in the first half, but then saw their defence beaten time and time again, with prop Thozama Nyeluku, number eight Likhona Sibhenye and flanker Perseverance Kgampepe getting two tries each.
The Pumas also scored nine tries in their match against Valke, totally dominating them for a 51-0 win. Pumas numner eight Nandipha Maepa was devastating on attack, scoring four of her team’s tries.
The WP team returns to Cape Town undefeated after yet another good showing, beating a strong Border team 41-12. They were in command at the break, leading 22-0 and continued their dominance afterwards, with six players dotting down in total.
The EP Elephants proved too strong for Limpopo Blue Bulls, winning 25-5 after leading 8-0 at the interval. The Eastern Cape side outscored the Limpopo team three tries to one and had fly half Byrhandré Dolf in fine form with the boot, kicking two conversions and two penalties.
The Sharks ruined a fine week for the Lions, beating them 24-20 in a come-from-behind effort. The tournament hosts were up 20-5 at the break, but the power of prop Sinothile Bhengu and the speed of scrum half Nompumelelo Gumede proved too much in the second half as the Sharks overhauled them with a brace of tries by both players.
Griquas and Border produced an entertaining match, with the latter prevailing 31-10. Seven tries were scored in the match, which saw superior support play by the Border team delivering them the win.
Boland outplayed Griffons 29-7 thanks to a strong first half where they scored four tries to nil to lead 22-0. The Griffons responded with a converted try in the second half, but a second try by Boland fly half Lee-ann Yman thwarted any further comeback efforts.
The Blue Bulls and SWD played to an exciting 26-26 draw. The Pretoria side looked in control at half-time, leading 19-7. The Blue Bulls number eight, Marema Mpya, scored a hat-trick of tries, with her third seemingly putting the game out of reach. SWD rallied late though, with centre Ne-dicha Gysman scoring to even the scores.
SA Rugby Girls u-18 Week match summaries
The Pumas outplayed the Leopards 42-20 in a match that delivered 10 tries, with Pumas prop Kamu Mokoena getting three for her team. The Pumas were leading 28-10 at the break.
Mokoena scored six tries during the week, finishing as leading try-scorer.
Griquas finished their campaign on a high by beating arch-rivals Free State 19-5 in a tight match. The Kimberley side, boosted by two converted tries from centre Vianca Boer, outscored their eastern neighbours three tries to one.
It was a good team effort from the Border side in their final match, blanking Griffons 27-0 while scoring five tries themselves. All five were scored by different players, with the four scored by the backs showing the dominance they had over their opponents.
Lions produced one of the best performances of the week in their 31-5 win over a very capable Boland side. The hosts won all three matches they played, but this five-try romp was their best. They dominated the first half, leading 26-0 at the break and then showed good game management in securing the win.
The match between EP and Sharks was a nail-biting affair. The Elephants scored first through hooker Asanele Wellem for a 5-0 lead at the break and that proved decisive. Both teams scored twice in the second half, but EP never surrendered the lead.
Old Mutual Zimbabwe also had a strong finish, beating SWD 31-10. They were on fire in the first half, with four tries in quick succession to ease into a strong 31-0 lead at the break. The Eagles played much better in the second half and pulled two tries back, but Zimbabwe kept their heads to win.
The Border team proved a handful this week, scoring 13 tries in all, with six of those coming in a comfortable 36-12 win over Limpopo Blue Bulls. The Border side were 12-0 ahead at the break and scored four second half tries as they pulled away from their opponents.
The WP team claimed bragging rights at the tournament with their 17-3 win over the Blue Bulls. The first half was a tight affair, with winger Alichia Arries dotting down for WP and the Blue Bulls responding via a penalty by fly half Cornelia Walker.
The second half opened up and the scoring opportunities arrived for the Cape side, who scored two more tries as they laid down the gauntlet to the Bulls.
