Park make semis with rout of Ntlaza
PARK advanced to the semifinals of the Eastern Cape Super 12 rugby tournament in style, thumping Ntlaza 22-3 at Londt Park in Port Elizabeth on Saturday.
It was a physical encounter as both teams were eager to progress to keep alive their chance of winning some silverware.
Park were first to threaten their visitors from Libode, near Mthatha, with a brilliant try from flyhalf Siya Moabi.
Park continued to exert pressure on Ntlaza, camping in their opposition’s half. Ntlaza responded with a penalty from Anathi Jingxela, who managed to curl in his kick from a challenging position.
From then on, it was Park who had the upper hand. Flank Kuhle Sonkosi played a vital role when Park were in attack mode and assisted fullback Andries Garcia to score a beautiful try that came from good interplay between players.
Park were clinical in their counter rucks and this paid dividends towards the end of the first half when eighthman Quintin Haasbroek powered his way through the Ntlaza defence to put his side ahead.
The Libode side took bad decisions and missed out on valuable try-scoring opportunities. They found it difficult to penetrate the Park defensive line and opted for kicking for the poles instead. But Jingxela could not convert the penalties given to them.
Park’s Marius Wesdtraadt scored a good try on the brink of half time, which put Ntlaza out of the game as the home side led 22-3 at the break.
The second half got off to a rather slow start with rain pounding the players. Park pressed on with their momentum but their efforts amounted to nothing. However, they had already done enough to complete the win.
Park will now face traditional rivals Harlequins in the semifinals while current champions Gardens will play East London’s club rugby giants, Swallows.