Western Province got their Currie Cup season off to a winning start after beating rivals the Blue Bulls 20-5 at Newlands on Saturday.
It wasn’t the prettiest of wins for coach John Dobson’s men, but they got the job done in the end thanks to their pack of
forwards.
Getting the better of the Bulls’ scrum on the day, Chris van Zyl and the rest of the engine room will be happy with a powerful display.
But while they set the tone for the match up front, the Bulls’ backline was always going to be a threat to WP.
And they proved as much from the first whistle, threatening to break WP’s wall out wide.
STOP DIE BUS: SP Marais halts Johnny Kotze's run. Photo: Phando Jikelo/ANA.
It was the visitors that drew first blood when they forced a turnover in their own 22, with looseforward Tim Agaba pulling in the unsuspecting WP defence before offloading to scrumhalf Embrose Papier.
The No.9 then sprinted down the right touchline like a speedy winger before diving over to give his team a 5-0 lead.
With the score coming after just seventh minute, it promised to be a long day at the office for the WP men.
But they stayed strong and defended like warriors to keep the Bulls scoreless for 73 minutes.
Match report: DHL WP laid the foundation for their three-try 20-5 Currie Cup win against the Vodacom Blue Bulls at DHL Newlands on a solid scrum and committed defence - https://t.co/t6GTfqLbeT #WPvBUL #wpjoulekkerding
— WP RUGBY (@WP_RUGBY) July 13, 2019
They still needed points of their own and broke their duck in the 26th minute when centre Ruhan Nel stretched over after some good Province interplay (5-5).
With both teams hardekwas on defence, striking first in the second half was always going to be important.
WP flyhalf Jean-Luc du Plessis then turned around the Bulls defence with a contestable kick for his chasers, before No.8 Juarno Augustus scooped up the ball to sneak over in the left corner (12-5).
NAIL IN THE COFFIN: WP's Craig Barry dots down. Photo: Phando Jikelo/ANA.
With 15 minutes to play, Province annihilated the Bulls scrum op die middel kolletjie and SP Marais added the three points to give this hosts a buffer.
WP hit the final nail in the coffin when replacements Joshua Stander and Craig Barry combined to score after the hooter, with Barry dotting down from a Stander cross-kick (20-5).