WSU hit right buttons again
IT WAS another good night for the Walter Sisulu University All Blacks as they continued their superb form in their maiden season of Varsity Shield rugby with a 17-13 victory over the Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) Vikings in Pretoria on Monday night.
This saw them retain top spot on the Shield log, two points ahead of last year’s runners-up, the University of the Western Cape (UWC).
“The coaching staff and the management were very happy to come away from TUT with a win,” WSU coach Sipho Metula said.
“It was a tough game, we knew it was going to be a challenge and were ready for it and managed to come away with a win in the end.”
For the All Blacks it was their toughest test so far, after they claimed impressive bonus point wins in their first two games.
However, the Vikings proved a different beast at their homeground and they duly gave WSU a run for their money.
The ever-impressing All Blacks were not to be denied though as they sealed their third win and second away from home.
“It is something we talk about and remind ourselves every week, that there is no easy game in this competition, we must not be big-headed because every team poses a threat,” admitted Metula.
WSU head into a bye next week and may lose top spot on the log to UWC, however an extremely tantalising prospect is on the cards with the All Blacks up against UWC in the last round of pool games on March 20, with that match a potential top-of-the-table clash set to be played at the BCM Stadium.
“We will give the guys a couple of days break, but then we need to get straight back into training for our next match in March,” claimed Metula.
“We aren't worried about losing top spot to UWC next week, we are just focusing on one game at a time and we know we still have to play them.”
WSU will also look forward to playing two of their last three pool games at home, which will give them a slight boost thanks to their partisan support. For the Eastern Cape's other two teams, the University of Fort Hare Blues and Rhodes, it was a night to forget for them. The Blues went down 1610 to the University of KwaZulu-Natal Impi in Pietermaritzburg, while Rhodes were absolutely demolished 88-8 by UWC in Cape Town.
Fort Hare have now lost twice, while picking up one win in the competition so far, but they can find a bit of consolation in the losing bonus point gained from a tough match.
Although Fort Hare are currently sixth on the log, they have played a game more than the three teams below them, all three have a game in hand on the Blues, so with three pool games left, the Blues can ill-afford another loss.
On the Rhodes Great Field in Grahamstown next Monday the Blues will want to get back on track with a win, while Rhodes will be desperate for a moraleboosting victory as their semifinal hopes seem to have gone up in smoke, having lost all three matches so far.