Boland got the weekend off to a cracking start when they staged a remarkable turnaround on Friday to defeat Airlink Pumas 29-26 in a cliffhanger of an encounter in Nelspruit, which saw them erasing an 18-point deficit in the process.

Also on Friday evening, the Sharks XV won the battle of the two last-placed sides when they downed DHL Western Province 29-21 in Durban for their first win in five attempts.

The Toyota Cheetahs won the only match on Saturday, staged in Bloemfontein, by a margin of 47-21 over the Fidelity ADT Lions, which saw Frans Steyns’ Free Staters surging into the top spot on the standings with just two more league rounds remaining.

The round was completed on Sunday, when Suzuki Griquas downed the Vodacom Bulls 41-21 in Pretoria to condemn them to a third consecutive loss.

As a result of the weekend’s results, the Cheetahs now lead the standings on 21 points, the same amount as the Kavaliers, who have a slightly weaker points differential. The leading duo are followed by Griquas in third place on 20 points, one more than the Lions in fourth.

The Pumas have 15 points, the Bulls have 10, the Sharks XV move to six points while WP are still on one point.

The Sanlam Boland Kavaliers’ superb form continued following their heroic comeback to defeat the Airlink Pumas 29-26 at the Mbombela Stadium in Nelspruit on Friday evening, despite trailing 21-3 at the halfway stage.

After being promoted to the big league earlier this year, the Kavaliers' remarkable season shows no slowing down as they secured a first away victory to keep them amongst the two top ranked sides on the standings. This win, forged from an 18-point deficit and a period with only 13 men on the field, massively boosts their playoff credentials.

The match began with the Pumas, coming off a narrow loss, looking to re-establish their home dominance against a side who had won all games at home in Wellington.

They started brightly, with James Tedder slotting an early penalty goal to give them a 3-0 lead. However, disaster then struck for the Wellington outfit as two yellow cards in quick succession left suddenly left them with with just 13 players – first to flanker Khwezi Mafu and then to fullback Tedder. The Pumas capitalized, with scrumhalf Ross Braude grabbing two tries and hooker Eddie Swart finishing a textbook driving maul, creating a seemingly comfortable 21-3 lead for the home side at halftime.

Whatever coach Hawies Fourie told his team at the halftime break did the trick magnificently because the Kavaliers came out for the second half a transformed side. First right wing Marcqiewn Titus and then left wing Xavier Mitchell went over for tries, with Mitchell's coming after a dazzling break. Tedder's conversion brought the score to 26-15 and with that the momentum had completely shifted.

Boland's forwards, sensing the Pumas were on the back foot, began to dominate and tighthead prop Dayan van der Westhuizen bulldozed over from close range. When Tedder slotted the conversion they had narrowed the gap to just 26-22.

However, the defining moment came in the final minutes – with Boland launching wave after attacking wave, a deliberate knock-down by Pumas wing Darren Adonis earned him a yellow card and, crucially, a penalty try for the visitors. That allowed the Kavaliers to take the lead for the first time since the opening minutes at 29-26.

The Pumas launched one desperate final attack to salvage the game but a knock-on at the line sealed their fate, allowing the Kavaliers to kick the ball into touch and secure their remarkable victory.

In Durban, the Hollywoodbets Sharks XV snapped their winless streak when they gained a hard-fought 29-21 (halftime 12-14) victory over WP in a Friday evening clash on the east coast. Both teams came into the match desperate for a win after starting the season with four straight losses.

The opening quarter was a cagey affair, with slippery conditions making it tough for either side to build momentum. The stalemate was finally broken in the 20^th minute when former Junior Bok skipper Paul de Villiers took advantage of an offside penalty to score for WP. Just four minutes later, Ezekiel Ngobeni – also a former SA U20 player – chased a clever grubber kick to extend the visitors' lead to 14-0, with Kyle Smith converting both tries.

However, the Durbanites managed to hit their stride in the final ten minutes of the opening half. A misjudged kick from WP’s Blitzbok Tristan Leyds allowed the Sharks’ Phiko Sobahle to pounce for the hosts' first try. Then, after the halftime hooter had sounded, a brilliant kick from flyhalf Jean Smith found the flying Junior Bok Jaco Williams, who showed great aerial skills to pluck the ball from the air and score, bringing them to within two points at the break.

The KZN outfit continued with that momentum which saw prop Lee Mazibuko powered over from close range after the restart, giving the home side their first lead of the match. Junior Bok stalwart Bathobele Hlekani added another try for the Sharks XV in the 62^nd minute to extend their lead to 26-14.

To their credit, WP fought back with a try from Brendan Venter to narrow the gap to 26-21, however, a late penalty goal from Smith sealed victory for the Sharks XV, giving them a much-needed confidence boost and their first win of the season while the Cape outfit will continue their search for a breakthrough win.

On Saturday in Bloemfontein, the Toyota Cheetahs delivered a commanding performance to defeat the Fidelity ADT Lions by 47-31 at Toyota Stadium in Bloemfontein, allowing them to top of the Carling Currie Cup log, surpassing the Sanlam Boland Kavaliers.

This high-scoring encounter was a game of two distinct halves, with the Free Staters establishing a dominant first-half lead of 26-5, before withstanding a spirited second-half comeback from the Lions.

It was the Cheetahs who raced out of the blocks and controlled the first ten minutes with relentless pressure. Hooker Marko Janse van Rensburg spearheaded the early assault, bagging a quick brace of tries from their powerful lineout mauls. With Cohen Jasper converting both, it handed the Cheetahs a commanding 14-0 lead.

Wing Prince Nkabinde then finished off a brilliant pass from Franco Smith in the corner to continue the onslaught as they increased the advantage to 19-0. And just past the half-hour mark, fullback Clayton Blommetjies muscled his way through the defence to secure the bonus-point try for the Cheetahs, converting his own effort to make it 26-0.

However, the Lions refused to surrender and in the final five minutes of the first half, Gianni Lombard broke their scoring drought, weaving past two defenders to dot down their first try before the break (26-5). This sparked a resurgence in the second half, ignited by Morne Brandon scoring their second try and converted by Sam Francis.

Despite the Lions' fightback, the Cheetahs steadied the ship when Michael Annies ran a sharp line to score a converted try. The Lions then staged a huge fightback by scoring three times, through Angelo Davids, Nico Steyn, and Rynhardt Jonker. That scoring blitz narrowed the deficit to just 33-31.

However, a penalty try was awarded to the Cheetahs after a cynical challenge by Lombard, extending their lead to 40-31. A few minutes later scrumhalf Jandre Nel then sealed the victory with a try, converted by Blommetjies, to put the game beyond the Lions' reach and securing a second win on the bounce for the Cheetahs.

In a thrilling encounter at Grizzly Park in Pretoria, the Suzuki Griquas put on a dominant display to defeat hosts Vodacom Bulls 42-21 in their round five encounter on Sunday afternoon.

Griquas’ victory was spearheaded by a clinical hat-trick from winger Gurshwin Wehr and secured their fourth consecutive win of the campaign. The away result lifts them to third place on the log, while the Bulls' search for a win continues after they suffered their third loss in a row.

The Bulls started strong and controlled territory, and this early pressure paid off when centre Stravino Jacobs easily broke the line to score the opening try, converted by Boeta Chamberlain. However, Griquas' response was swift and in a nine-minute spell they scored 14 points, with the Wehr grabbing two tries in quick succession.

Flyhalf George Whitehead converted both and with the visitors piling on the pressure, Cebo Dlamini went over for their third try while Whitehead's accurate boot extended the lead to a 21-7 halftime advantage.

Much to the disappointment of the Bulls supporters, Griquas didn't waste any time in the second half and started where they left off. Just two minutes in, and with Bulls captain Nama Xaba in the sin bin, man of the match Wehr completed his hat-trick, when he ran onto a perfect pass from Whitehead to cross for the bonus-point try.

Shortly thereafter Janco Uys broke away from a maul to score the Griquas' fifth try, with Whitehead's conversion pushing the lead to an insurmountable 35-7.

Despite a few handling errors creeping in, Griquas showed they were still in control when centre Zane Bester grabbed their sixth try while Whitehead continued his perfect kicking performance by adding the extras.

To their credit, the Bulls managed to find some late consolation, with Junior Pokomela and Katlego Letebele scoring in the final five minutes to add some respectability to the scoreline.

In next weekends’ penultimate league round, log leaders Toyota Cheetahs host third-placed Suzuki Griquas in a 17h00 kick-off on Friday evening in Bloemfontein.

That encounter is followed by the crucial Jukskei River derby between Gauteng neighbours, the Fidelity ADT Lions and Vodacom Bulls, at Ellis Park from 15h00 on Saturday, before the Hollywoodbets Sharks XV welcome the high-flying Sanlam Boland Kavaliers from 17h10 at the Woodburn Stadium in Pietermaritzburg.

The sixth round will conclude with the Sunday afternoon clash between DHL Western Province and the Airlink Pumas at the DHL Stadium in Cape Town, at 15h00. All the action will be broadcast live on SuperSport.

Scorers:

Airlink Pumas 26 (21), Sanlam Boland Kavaliers 29 (3)
Pumas – Tries: Ross Braude (2), Eduan Swart (2); Conversions: Danrich Visagie (3).
Boland – Tries: Marcqiewn Titus, Xavier Mitchell, Dayan van der Westhuizen, Penalty Try. Conversions: James Tedder (2). Penalty goal: Tedder.

Hollywoodbets Sharks XV 29 (12), DHL Western Province 21 (14)
Sharks XV – Tries: Phiko Sobahle, Jaco Williams, Lee Mazibuko, Bathobele Hlekani. Conversions: Jean Smith (3). Penalty goal: Smith.
WP – Tries: Paul de Villiers, Ezekiel Ngobeni, Brendan Venter. Conversions: Kyle Smith (2), Ronald Brown.

Toyota Cheetahs 47 (26) Fidelity ADT Lions 31 (5)
Cheetahs – Tries: Marko Janse van Rensburg (2), Prince Nkabinde, Clayton Blommetjies, Michael Annies, Jandre Nel, Penalty Try. Conversions: Cohen Jasper (2), Blommetjies (3).
Lions – Tries: Gianni Lombard, Morne Brandon, Angelo Davids, Nico Steyn, Rynhardt Jonker. Conversions: Sam Francis (3).

Vodacom Bulls 21 (7), Suzuki Griquas 42 (21)
Bulls – Tries: Stravino Jacobs, Junior Pokomela, Katlego Letebele. Conversions: Boeta Chamberlain (3).
Griquas – Tries: Gurshwin Wehr (3), Cebo Dlamini, Janco Uys, Zane Bester. Conversions: George Whitehead (6).