URC Round 12 Review

Lions Land South African Silverware

The first BKT URC silverware of the season has been decided with the Fidelity SecureDrive Lions winning the South African Shield.

Their trophy triumph was confirmed when their 24-10 victory over the DHL Stormers was followed by the Hollywoodbets Sharks losing 41-12 to the Vodacom Bulls.

The Lions won four of their six domestic derbies to finish three points ahead of the Sharks, with the Bulls and Stormers - who meet in Pretoria later this month - now unable to catch them.

As well as topping the South African table, they are also looking good in the overall BKT URC log as they set their sights on the play-offs. They have moved into seventh spot following back-to-back Ellis Park victories over the Sharks and now the Stormers.

Skipper Francke Horn said: “It’s been a fantastic last two weeks. Two really good wins, local derbies that in previous seasons could have gone the other way.”

Head coach Ivan van Rooyen added: “I think we’ve grown a lot over the last month. The experienced leaders are driving hard and pushing what’s needed.

“We spoke during pre-season about needing to be better and more consistent against South African teams, as that’s where we felt we lost points in the past. So I’m incredibly proud.”

Playing their first game since the announcement of their new sponsored branding, the Lions built a solid lead against the Stormers in Johannesburg with tries from flanker Sibabalwe Mahashe, centre Henco van Wyk and wing Erich Cronje.

They then defended heroically, keeping their opponents out even when they were down to 13 men following two yellow cards in quick succession, one of which - to prop Conrad van Vuuren - was upgraded to a 20 minute red card.

The defeat for the Stormers came on a weekend when the league table was turned on its head with the top three going into the Origin round of matches all being beaten.

Leaders Glasgow Warriors suffered a dramatic last minute loss to Connacht Rugby in Galway with Kiwi No 8 Sean Jansen scoring a lineout maul try in the final play to secure a 15-10 triumph.

Second-placed Leinster Rugby saw their seven game winning run in the league come to an end as they were defeated 8-7 by Cardiff Rugby in monsoon-like conditions at the Arms Park.

That result sees Cardiff move up to third, overtaking the Stormers who have now lost their last three BKT URC matches having won their first eight.

Munster Rugby have advanced into fourth spot thanks to a hard-fought 21-7 win over Zebre Parma at Thomond Park where it was 7-7 at half-time.

The Stormers are down to fifth, while Ulster Rugby have dropped to sixth after losing 21-10 to the Ospreys in Bridgend.

Below the celebrating Lions, the top eight is completed by the Bulls who ran in seven tries in beating the Sharks at Loftus Versfeld, with two apiece from scrum-half Embrose Papier and centre Harold Vorster.

The weekend’s other games saw Edinburgh Rugby beat the Scarlets 24-19, while Dragons RFC and Benetton Rugby drew 15-15 amid more late drama at Rodney Parade.

Ospreys On The Play-Off Hunt

Ospreys coach Mark Jones believes his team can make the play-offs having moved within a point of the top eight by extending their unbeaten league run to five matches with a 21-10 win over Ulster.

They secured the spoils with late tries from Player of the Match James Ratti and winger Dan Kasende in front of their delighted fans at Bridgend’s Brewery Field.

Reflecting on his team’s hopes of qualifying for the knock-out stages, Jones said: “There are six rounds left. We have got to go on the road a little bit in the next few weeks, but we’ve also got some derbies in there.

“There’s a lot of rugby to be played. It is tight. Anybody at any time can get in that top eight at the moment, right down to about 14th.

“One bonus point win, one loss can shift you up and down the table three or four places.

“So we are going to have to string some games together. But that’s five now we are undefeated in the league, so that’s a bit of momentum.

“I do think we can make the top eight. I really believe in the group.”

Trailing 10-7 at the break, the Ospreys hammered away through the second half, but couldn’t turn pressure into points until flanker Ratti went over from a tap penalty 12 minutes from time, with winger Kasende then pouncing to seal the victory late on.

“We made very hard work of it in patches, particularly the second half,” said Jones.

“I think with about 15 minutes to go, it was 70 per cent territory and not a lot to show for it.

“Our conversion rate in the red zone was well below what it normally is.

“But we found a way. We went away from the lineout and went after a tap strike. It was smart from the boys there just to mix it up.

“We have got it up our sleeve. It’s another way of us trying to convert in that area of the pitch.

“We showed some good leadership on the field there to identify it and adjust well. I was really pleased with the composure and just pleased for the boys overall.”

Adding his assessment, blindside Ratti said: “It was a big physical battle.

“Ulster are having a good season and we knew they were going to bring it physically, so it was up to us to match it and try and go beyond.

“We back ourselves against anyone here at the Brewery Field. It’s always a good occasion down here. You can hear the fans all the time. When you are blowing, you hear the crowd. They get behind you and it gives you that little extra bit in your legs to keep fighting.

“Even after we went behind quite early, we were confident we were still going to be in the game. We stuck to our process, fought back and I thought we deserved it in the end.”

Saturday evening’s other game in Wales saw a dramatic ending at Rodney Parade where the Dragons and Benetton drew 15-15.

It looked as though the Italian visitors were going to claim the spoils with Player of the Match Onisi Ratave having crossed twice to put them in front.

But, in the final play of the game, the Dragons’ centre Fine Inise touched down to level the scores.

That gave Angus O’Brien the chance to secure a fifth successive home win for his team, but the full-back’s touchline conversion just drifted wide.

His coach Filo Tiatia said: “What I said to the group is the silver lining is we’ve got two points out of it.

“I was very proud of the performance. The character, the grit, the scrap and the fight wanting to stay in it was excellent.”

Giving the view from the Benetton camp, their skipper Andy Uren said: “We let that one go. We should have won the game. I think we were the better team. We are very, very disappointed.”

Belcher Blown Away By His Team’s Fighting Spirit

Cardiff captain Liam Belcher has paid tribute to the “unbelievable fight” from his team in the wake of their victory over league champions Leinster.

Belcher’s boys triumphed 8-7 at a rainswept Arms Park as they held firm in the tense closing stages to end their opponents’ 11-match winning run in all competitions and move up to third in the BKT URC table.

The way they saw the game out was all the more impressive given they were down to 14 men for the final 15 minutes with winger Jacob Beetham unable to get back on the field following his yellow card as his team ran down the clock in a protracted final play.

“From the boys’ point of view, the fight they showed in that weather was unbelievable,” said Wales hooker Belcher.

“It was sopping out there. It was like a monsoon in the first half, so fair credit to them.

“We did the last 15 minutes with 14 men because we didn’t get Jacob back on quick enough. That’s just a credit to the squad.”

Reflecting on the win, he added: “For the table, it’s quite big. It hopefully puts us in a better position than we were last year.”

Beetham was understandably relieved, with Leinster having crossed straight after his 65th minute sin binning for a deliberate knock-on to cut the deficit to just a point.

“When they scored that try, I was thinking the worst and thinking ‘Oh no’ because it feels like it comes back on you if you are the one that has got the yellow,” he said.

“I wanted to get back on and I was a little bit nervous at the end. I was just so happy when we managed to keep them out and come away with the win. It was really cool.

“A win against Leinster is amazing. They are such a great outfit, so whenever we get a chance to play a team like that you are licking your lips thinking this could be an amazing win if we get it. To be fair, we stuck to our game plan and it worked.”

Head coach Corniel van Zyl picked out one area of his team’s performance for particular praise.

“Our discipline was the best it has been this season and potentially what I can remember in my coaching experience because we only conceded three penalties which was massive,” he said.

“It’s always nice to get on the right side of the result. I thought we adapted well to the conditions. Obviously the kicking came into play and I was pleased with how the plan unfolded.

“We pride ourselves on performing at home. We want to make this place a fortress and be as good as we can at the Arms Park in front of our friends and families. That was the biggest focus.”

Cardiff’s try came from scrum-half Aled Davies who claimed his first touchdown for the club.

“It was great. The weather was tough, but we played some good rugby,” he said.

“We have got big games coming up and we know that, so it’s important for us to really crack on with the end of the season.”

Leinster coach Leo Cullen said: “I thought Cardiff deserved to win. They were better in terms of their kicking strategy and they were incredibly disciplined with everything that they did.”

In Friday night’s other game, Edinburgh played some sparkling rugby as they came from 14-0 down to beat the Scarlets 24-19 at the Hive Stadium, with full-back Harry Paterson claiming the winning try 11 minutes from time.

Their coach Sean Everitt commented: “My nerves were shot after that! It must have been enjoyable to watch from the side, I’m sure.

“I didn’t think it would be perfect, but I didn’t expect to have conceded 15 turnovers by half-time. So that put us under the pump.

“It was then just about looking after the ball and tidying up the breakdown. We put together the first 10 minutes in the second half really well and that set the foundation for us.”

Scarlets director of rugby Nigel Davies said: “We were on top in the main in the first half, but Edinburgh played some great rugby in the second half and we couldn’t contain them. We had opportunities, but we just weren’t clinical enough.”

What’s Coming Next?

There’s a break from league action next week as the focus switches back to the Guinness Six Nations.

But there are two rearranged fixtures on the eve of the Super Saturday finale to the Championship, with Connacht hosting the Scarlets and Edinburgh entertaining Ulster on Friday, March 13.

Then there’s a full programme on the weekend of March 20-21 with the pick of the Round 13 fixtures being the top of the table clash between leaders Glasgow and second-placed Leinster at Scotstoun.