EP Kings bring home win for fans
THE EP Kings finally gave their supporters something to cheer about when they beat a Sharks XI 23-8 to register their first home win of the season in the Vodacom Cup last night.
In their previous three home matches at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium the Kings were beaten by Griquas, Western Province and the SWD Eagles.
Though the win brought some belated smiles to the faces of Kings fans, it came too late to earn them a spot in the quarterfinals.
The game was up for grabs until late in the contest before the fired-up Kings powered their way to victory with a storming finish.
In the final 11 minutes Scott van Breda nailed a penalty and then scrumhalf Enrico Acker crashed over for a try to clinch a morale-boosting win for the Kings.
The Kings struck the first blow of the evening when flyhalf Hansie Graaff succeeded with a penalty to reward the home side for enterprising play during the opening exchanges.
They held that lead until the 15th minute when the Sharks struck back with a penalty of their own from Garth April to level matters at 3-3.
Elusive Kings wing Luther Obi had the crowd on their feet after 26 minutes when he managed to wriggle his way through the Sharks defence to score the first try of the game and earn the Kings a 8-3 lead.
But the Sharks struck back almost immediately when their inventive scrumhalf Hanco Venter went over in the corner to level matters at 8-8 in what was proving to be a tight contest.
The Sharks ended the first half on the front foot and the Kings defence had to work overtime to keep the visitors at bay and leave the teams level at 8-8 at halftime.
After the break the Kings scored their second try when alert scrumhalf Jaco Grobler took a quick tap penalty before he powered his way over the line to put the Kings ahead 13-8.
Ahead of the clash Kings head coach Mzwandile Stick appealed to his team to give it one last shot and they responded with their third win of the season.
The Kings will now have a break before the Currie Cup Premier Division kicks off in August.
After their unsuccessful Vodacom Cup campaign, much hard work lies ahead of the Kings if they plan to be competitive in the Currie Cup, which will present much sterner tests than they have faced so far. The scorers: EP Kings: Tries: Luther Obi, Jaco Grobler, Enrico Acker. Conversion: Scott van Breda. Penalties: Hansie Graaff, Scott van Breda.
Sharks XV: Try: Hanco Venter. Penalty: Garth April.