An enthralling bonus point 34 – 31 victory for Strand Rugby Club over visiting side Vineyards RFC saw them leap into the fourth position on the log.
The Gustrouw Sports Grounds played host to an emphatic Western Province Super League B encounter on Saturday (1 July). Strand sprung into a narrow lead heading into the break, 17 – 14, but it was the brilliance and supreme fitness level of the home side that saw them eventually hang on for a victory over the Paarl juggernaut club.
The bonus point win meant that Strand secured the fourth spot on the overall Super B log – just seven points adrift third placed All Saints RFC and a game in hand over their Somerset West neighbours.
Tries for Strand came via captain Diego Visagie, two tries from the talented Randall van Wyk, sensational speedster Ronan Daniels, and first-team debutant Nathan Fransman. Fransman, playing in his first start in the first team, was on song with his tactical prowess and made light work of finding the weak spots in the Vineyards’ defensive lines. Many of the broken play attacks started with Fransman’s ability to use his spatial awareness and seek to either attack or kick for territory. The young flyhalf kicked three of his four conversion attempts along with a try of his own and a penalty conversion to take his tally for the match to 14 points.
The first half got off to a frantic start with both sides going hard in what could be dubbed as a fiercely contested match. Vineyards kept within touching distance of their hosts, but despite having a one-man advantage on three occasions in the match, they could not do enough to outsmart Strand. The home side had three players in quick succession – 30 minutes in total – yellow carded.
Ironically it was the discipline from the Strand side that saw them maintain and absorb the pressure from the Vineyards attack during critical moments. Strand dominated the set pieces. Director of Rugby at Strand, Ramone Samuels, was buoyed by the performance of his side and credited the memorable win to the creative ability and discipline during the periods of playing with a man short.
“We were the fitter side,” Samuels said. “The areas in which we asserted our dominance paid off well, especially during those minutes when we were one man short – two in the forwards and one in the backline. When you are down a man in the pack [of forwards] it places a lot of pressure on the remaining seven players, but the mauls remain a great source of quality ball [possession] for us. I am very proud of the boys, beating a quality side like Vineyards takes a lot of discipline, talent, and skill.
“We not only won but we picked up a try-scoring bonus point win, which means a lot to the coaching staff and executive management of this great club. This is the kind of victory that testifies to the hard work the players put in when there are no crowds, the integrity of this crop of players is contagious and admirable.”
Strand head into a two-week break before they take on a short trip down the N2 to face in-form and fellow Helderberg-based side, All Saints, in a highly anticipated derby encounter at the Helderzicht Sports Grounds on 22 July.
. Other Results
Super League B: All Saints 20 – 0 Paarl, Northern League: Gordon’s Bay Pioneers 22 – 18 Strand United, Sir Lowrians 19 – 13 Whistling Wheels RFC, Blakes 12 – 15 Raithby.
. Fixtures Saturday 8 July
Super League A: St George’s vs Hamiltons (Gustrouw), Helderberg vs False Bay (Charles Morkel). Super League B: All Saints vs Collegians RFC (Helderzicht). Super League C: Macassar vs Pniël Villagers (Macassar). Northern League: Sir Lowrians vs Excelsior (Sir Lowry’s Pass), Windmeul United vs GB Pioneers (Paarl), Strand United vs Blakes (Abattoir), Stellenbosch Coronations RFC vs Raithby Universals (Cloetesville).
