Hungry Lions feed off Blue Bulls’ mistakes
| Johannesburg side going for the jugular this season, they want the trophy
THE Golden Lions played in an unusual dark blue strip yesterday. It closely resembled the jersey of the Currie Cup’s defending champions, the Sharks — and the Johannesburg side played like champions as they made a great start to the season with a victory over Gauteng rivals the Blue Bulls.
The Lions rugby union is commemorating their 125th anniversary this year, hence their one-off blue strip. Those were their colours in the 1890s, later to be replaced by red.
The match was also the 150th between the Jukskei rivals. At home, the Lions made it count, and in the process Johan Ackermann’s men made their intentions clear — they are going for the jugular this season, they want the Currie Cup trophy.
Flyhalf Boshoff, against his former union, played with added confidence
In the other camp, the woes continue for the Pretoria side whose campaign in the Super Rugby competition was as unsatisfactory as their performance at Ellis Park.
Not even the return of Frans Ludeke as coach of the Currie Cup side, after three seasons of only being at the helm of the Super 15 team, could motivate the Bulls.
The last time the Bulls won the Currie Cup, in 2009, Ludeke was the mentor. That year they began their campaign against the Lions and won. All in Pretoria were hoping for the same with the return of the coach, but it was not to be.
The Lions were the hungrier, the more disciplined and the more structured side. They showed their intentions early as they went to the half-time break 23-3 up — two tries, two conversions, two penalties and a drop-goal to a solitary penalty from the visitors.
The home side were the first to get the scoreboard ticking with a try from centre Stokkies Hanekom, who broke through a leaky Bulls defence just five minutes into the match.
The second five-pointer came with only four minutes remaining before referee Jaco van Heerden took the game to the break. Lions wing Ruan Combrink poured water over a potential Bulls move with an interception. With the gas he has in his heels, nobody was going to catch him, and he dotted down under the poles.
Marnitz Boshoff had a good game for the Lions. With his closest competitor for the No 10 jersey, Elton Jantjies, having departed to ply his trade in Japan, Lions flyhalf Boshoff, against his former union, played with added confidence.
Perhaps the flair, gusto and risks Boshoff displayed had nothing to do with Jantjies’ departure, but was the result of the boost he has been with a call-up and a cap for the Springboks this year.
After Boshoff had marshalled his troops with distinction, coach Johan Ackermann gave his most trusted soldier a rest with 30 minutes remaining, hoping the risk to field an uncapped 20-year-old Jaco van der Walt would not backfire. It did not.
After only five minutes on the field Van der Walt calmly slotted his first Currie Cup points from a penalty. He picked up where Boshoff left off, and announced his arrival with a further five points with his boot.
The Bulls attempted a comeback in the second half as winger Sampie Mastriet scored a quick try just after the match resumed. Jacques-Louis Potgieter converted — and that would be the last time the visitors would add points to their tally on the night.
The Lions added two more tries, this time from their forwards Jaco Kriel and Warwick Tecklenburg, to put the game way out of the Bulls’ reach.
The Bulls return to Loftus Versfeld not anywhere near being satisfied, while the Lions will hope they will be able to carry the momentum from their win as the season continues.
The Bulls next face Western Province in Cape Town while the Lions’ next assignment will be against rookies the Eastern Province Kings at home next week.