Border women book spot in final
Side leads log, only Province can catch them
The Border women’s team made sure that they will contest this year’s Women’s Interprovincial competition final for the sixth year in a row after beating KwaZulu-Natal 27-10 at the Buffalo City Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
The win meant that the team consolidated their place at the top of the log on 19 points, four ahead of defending champions Western Province and six ahead of third-placed Eastern Province with one round of group stage matches to go.
Western Province are the only side that can catch Border at the top, with the log leaders at the end of the group stage hosting the second-placed team in the final, but that is very unlikely with Border’s last game against bottom of the table Free State, while Province take on EP for the final berth.
So Border should easily take top spot, with Western Province their most likely challengers for the 2018 title.
“It was our goal from the very start that we wanted to reclaim our title,” said Border women’s coach Nwabisa Ngxatu.
“Last year was hard, I was here when they [Western Province] beat us and we want to get our title back again this year, so we are doing well in that so far.
“Getting the five points against KZN was important and we have now made sure we will be in the final.”
The KZN match was expected to be an easy win for Border, but they were made to work extremely hard by a disruptive KZN team that put in a lot of work at the breakdown and ran hard at the Border defence at every opportunity.
It meant that with eight minutes left in the match the result was still up in the air with Border holding a slender 15-10 lead, before two late tries in the final seven minutes sealed a comfortable win.
“We have to be happy with the result, even though it was not the best of performances,” said Ngxatu.
In the match KZN took an early fourth-minute lead with an unconverted try to left wing Buhle Msomi, but Border hit back with quick-fire scores to lock Zandile Khumalo and inside centre Aphiwe Ngwevu to take a 10-5 lead by the 12th minute.
KZN levelled things up in the 20th minute through right wing Nqobile Mhlangu, before repeated infringements saw the referee send visiting flank Micke Gunter and home prop Asithandile Notoyanto to the sin bin in the 30th and 31st minutes.
Border then reclaimed the lead in the 37th minute as Snenhlanhla Shozi scored the first of her two tries.
Border kicked it up a gear in the final seven minutes as Shozi made the game safe before flank Lusanda Dumke scored the final try with three minutes of the match to go.
Border will finish their group stage phase against Free State away in just under two weeks.