The DHL Stormers, who are currently the Vodacom United Rugby Championship log leaders, showed that they can replicate that dominant form in Europe in their opening game of the Investec Champions Cup on Friday night as they beat Bayonne by 26-17 in France to register their seventh successive win of the season.
But it was a case of bitter disappointment for the Vodacom Bulls and Hollywoodbets Sharks as they went down 46-33 against the Bordeaux Bègles in Pretoria on Saturday, and 56-19 against Stade Toulousain in France on Sunday.
The Lions and Toyota Cheetahs also hit bumps in their opening EPCR Challenge Cup matches, going down 26-18 against Benetton in Johannesburg on Saturday, and 42-12 against the Exeter Chiefs in Exeter on Sunday, which dented their hopes of staking a claim for the title this season.
The result for the DHL Stormers saw them finish the opening round third in their pool behind Stade Rochelais and Leinster, who were able to secure bonus point victories in their matches, while the Vodacom Bulls and Hollywoodbets Sharks both finished fifth in their respective pools, with the Pretoria side at least managing to secure a try-scoring bonus point against the defending champions.
The Lions, meanwhile, currently occupy fourth place in their pool and the Toyota Cheetahs fifth in the European Challenge Cup, with both sides unable to secure a point for their efforts this past weekend.
DHL Stormers overcome red card for victory in Bayonne
The DHL Stormers overcame a red and yellow card to topple Aviron Bayonnais 26-17 and end their unbeaten run at Stade Jean-Dauger on Friday night in a spirited performance, which saw the Capetonians register their seventh straight win of the season and kick off their Investec Champions Cup campaign on a strong note.
The Capetonians showed their intent from the outset, with Imad Khan crossing the chalk for the first of their two tries within the opening two minutes for a 7-0 lead, and they managed to shut out the determined hosts until the 15th minute when they touched down from a chip and chase.
They did well to capitalise on the hosts’ ill-discipline later in the half, adding three penalty goals by Clinton Swart within eight minutes to extend their lead to 16-5, and they held onto that 11-point lead going into the break.
The Cape side had to work hard in the second half to fend off the hosts, but a 20-minute red card to Adre Smith paved the way for Bayonne to score their second try from a charged-down kick in the 52nd minute and another eight minutes later, which saw them trail by one point.
The DHL Stormers’ woes continued as Leolin Zas received a yellow card in the 67th minute, but their luck turned as the French outfit received two yellow cards within two minutes late in the game, and Paul de Villiers pounced on the opportunity to score their second try for a 21-17 lead with five minutes to play.
Swart ensured that there was no way back for the hosts as he added the conversion and a subsequent penalty goal in the dying minutes to clinch a rewarding 26-17 victory, which will set the team in good stead as they return to South Africa to face Stade Rochelais at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium this weekend.
Scorers:
Aviron Bayonnais 17 (5) – Tries: Federico Mori, Arnaud Erbinartegaray, Lucas Paulos. Conversion: Tom Spring.
DHL Stormers 26 (16) – Tries: Imad Khan, Paul de Villiers. Conversions: Clinton Swart (2). Penalty goals: Swart (4).
Ill-discipline bites Vodacom Bulls against defending champions
Two second-half yellow cards bit the Vodacom Bulls badly in their Investec Champions Cup encounter against defending champions Bordeaux-Begles in Pretoria on Saturday, as it allowed the visitors to overturn a 33-22 half-time deficit into a commanding 46-33 victory.
The match was intense from the outset, with both teams throwing everything at one another, and it showed in a frantic first half in which a total of eight tries were scored – five by the Vodacom Bulls and three by Bordeaux.
The Frenchmen struck first, scoring two tries in the opening 10 minutes to one by Sebastian de Klerk for a 12-7 lead, and both teams continued to show their try-scoring prowess as the half progressed, with Reinhardt Ludwig, Akker van der Merwe, Canan Moodie, and Jeandre Rudolph adding their names to the scoresheet for the hosts, while the visitors added only one more try and a penalty goal in the half.
A combination of ill-discipline and lapses on defence at crucial times for the hosts, however, was their downfall in the second stanza, as David Kriel and Handre Pollard were sent to the sin bin within 10 minutes, forcing the Bulls to play for 20 minutes with 14 men.
This saw the defending champions finish the match with a flourish, with an early try and another three within quick succession in the fourth quarter, which proved too much for the home side. Despite showing true desperation at times to fight back as the match closed out, it was too little too late, and they were forced to settle for the disappointing 46-33 defeat.
Scorers:
Vodacom Bulls 33 (33) - Tries: Sebastian de Klerk, Reinhardt Ludwig, Akker van der Merwe, Canan Moodie, Jeandre Rudolph. Conversions: Handre Pollard (4).
Bordeaux-Begles 46 (22) - Tries: Damian Penaud, Louis Bielle-Biarrey (2), Maxime Lamothe, Boris Palu, Mattieu Jalibert, Salesi Rayasi. Conversions: Jalibert (2), Maxime Lucu (2). Penalty goal: Jalibert.
Toulouse outclass young Hollywoodbets Sharks for big victory
Stade Toulousain kicked off their Investec Champions Cup campaign on a flying note on Sunday, as they outscored a youthful yet brave Hollywoodbets Sharks team by scoring eight tries to three for a convincing 56-19 victory at Stade Ernest Wallon in France.
The hosts completely dominated the match from the outset and left the KwaZulu-Natalian defence flustered as they ran in one try after another, and despite the visitors’ best efforts, they were unable to stop to flood of attack.
Such was their dominance, Toulouse crossed the tryline four times in the opening 23 minutes, and Thomas Ramos was on form with the boot, converting all of them, which handed the hosts an encouraging 28-0 lead.
The Hollywoodbets Sharks hit back with a try by Nick Hatton in the 25th minute, but with the conversion proving unsuccessful and the visitors being unable to break through the defence again before halftime, they found themselves trailing by 28-5.
The Durbanites fought back after the break and scored a try by Ross Braude eight minutes into the second half to reduce their deficit to 28-12, and they showed character to hold them out until the fourth quarter, however, their defence again let them down toward the end of the match.
Toulouse put their enterprising and determined attack to good use to break away on the scoreboard thanks to three tries in eight minutes, which secured Ange Capuozzo his hattrick, with the Hollywoodbets Sharks scoring a consolation try by Le Roux Malan. But this was cancelled out on the stroke of full-time, as the hosts broke through for their eighth try to secure a well-deserved 56-19 victory.
Scorers:
Stade Toulousain 56 (28) – Tries: Ange Capuozzo (3), Julien Marchand (2), Kalvin Gourgues, Mathis Castro-Ferreira, Teddy Thomas. Conversions: Thomas Ramos (8).
Hollywoodbets Sharks 19 (5) - Tries: Nick Hatton, Ross Braude, Le Roux Malan. Conversions: Jordan Hendrikse, Jean Smith.
Yellow card costs Lions dearly against Benetton
A costly yellow card 12 minutes before the final whistle cost the Lions dearly in their opening EPCR Challenge Cup match against Benetton in Johannesburg on Saturday, in an evenly matched, yet at times scrappy encounter, with the extra man for the visitors seeing them score two late tries and a drop goal to snatch a 26-18 victory.
The Lions held their own until after halftime, despite leaking an early try, which was eased by a penalty goal by Chris Smith soon after.
Jacob Umaga stretched the Italians’ lead to 8-3 with a penalty goal in the 12th minute, but this was cancelled out by Lions wing Kelly Mpeku, who scored the hosts’ first try three minutes before the break, and the conversion allowed them to sneak into a 10-8 halftime lead.
A try by Ruan Venter early in the second half extended the Lions’ lead to 15-8 to reverse the visitors’ marginal control, which saw them carry the ball more often and make encouraging line breaks.
Both sides added subsequent penalty goals, with Benetton scoring two, but the match swayed in the Italians’ favour in the 68th minute as Mpeku received a yellow card for a deliberate knock-down, which the visitors pounced on with two tries in four minutes by Leonardo Marin before finishing the match with a stunning long-range drop goal by Tomas Albornoz to secure a rewarding 26-18 victory.
Scorers:
Lions 18 (10) – Tries: Kelly Mpeku, Ruan Venter. Conversion: Chris Smith. Penalty goals: Smith (2).
Benetton 26 (8) – Tries: Rhyno Smith, Leonardo Marin (2). Conversion: Tomas Albornoz. Penalty goals: Albornoz, Jacob Umaga. Drop goal: Albornoz.
Strong first half paves the way for Exeter to outplay Toyota Cheetahs
A strong first half by the Exeter Chiefs, in which they scored an impressive five tries to one, paved the way for the English club to outplay the Toyota Cheetahs 42-12 at Sandy Park on Sunday, getting their EPCR Challenge Cup campaign off to a strong footing.
The Exeter Chiefs made a strong statement from the outset, scoring their first try within the first five minutes as they spread the ball out wide, and they added their second five-pointer from a rolling maul in the 20th minute before the Toyota Cheetahs hit back with their first try in the 23rd minute by Michael Annies to trail by 14-7.
This, however, was short-lived as the hosts finished the half on fire with their expansive attack and strong forward play paying off with another three tries within the short space of 11 minutes, to enter the break 35-7 ahead.
The visitors had the first say in the second half as Munier Hartzenberg dotted down for their second try, but Exter added their sixth try minutes later to stretch their lead to 42-12.
The Toyota Cheetahs fought tooth and nail to force their way back into the match in a competitive closing quarter, but the damage inflicted early on by the hosts was simply too much, while they stood their ground on defence, despite several efforts by the Toyota Cheetahs to breach the defence and get close to their tryline. And in the end, it was a case of bitter disappointment for the Free State outfit, who had to settle for the 30-point defeat.
Scorers:
Exeter Chiefs 42 (35) – Tries: Len Ikitau, Greg Fisilau, Harvey Skinner, Scott Sio, Henry Slade, Immanuel Feyi-Waboso. Conversions: Slade (6).
Toyota Cheetahs 12 (7) – Tries: Michael Annies, Munier Hartzenberg. Conversion: Jaco van der Walt.
