Macassar RFC remains unbeaten in Super League B (SLB), following a nail-biting 29-24 win over Vineyards RFC at a wet Riverside Park on Saturday 12 April.
The victory, the second in as many matches for the MC Boys, earned them a full haul of five log points, but once again, ill-discipline nearly undid all their hard work.
After opening their season with a hard-fought 15-20 win over Kylemore RFC, the Macassar faithful were treated to another tense encounter.
The visitors were first to strike, slotting an early penalty following a period of dominance (0-3). But once Macassar found their rhythm, buoyed by their home crowd, the tide quickly turned.
The host’s superior territory and structured attacking shape began to wear down the visitors, with their pack surprisingly dominating the traditionally strong Vineyards’ pack.
Loosehead prop Ashwill Swartz was everywhere – immense in defense and relentless in his work rate. He was a constant thorn in the visitors’ side. Prop Nangamso Bukani also laid down a marker with his abrasive presence up front.
The MC Boys’ backline finally turned the pressure into points when winger Breyton Kleyn finished off a brilliant coast-to-coast move, diving over in the corner for a converted try (7-3).
That opened the floodgates, with Byron Kleyn and scrumhalf Jovan Cookson crossing for further converted tries to give Macassar a commanding 21-3 lead at the break.
The home side were shown three yellow cards in the match, allowing Vineyards back into the contest. The visitors, playing their first match of the season, capitalised on the numerical advantage, clawing their way back with a converted try and another late score that brought them within touching distance of the hosts.
With the clock ticking down and Vineyards launching a wave of attacks, it took a monumental defensive stand – eerily reminiscent of last week’s win – to keep them out. Macassar’s defensive grit in the dying minutes ultimately sealed the 29-24 win.
Carlo le Roux, head coach of Macassar, and the coaching staff will no doubt address their team’s Achilles heel: discipline. In a league as competitive as SLB, repeated infringements could prove costly later on.
Macassar head into the Easter break on a high, but will need to tighten the screws before travelling to Lentegeur to take on Collegians RFC on Saturday 26 April.
In Super League A (SLA), Helderberg RFC faced False Bay RFC at Charles Morkel Stadium in Strand, with the home side edging their old rivals 36-34.
This after dominating proceedings in the first half to lead 24-10 at half-time.
The visitors lead 0-3 after a third minute penalty goal. Berge captain and scrumhalf Michael Visser slotted a penalty to level the score (3-3) in the seventh minute.
In the 22nd minute Visser tore through the defence to send flanker Blaine Skelton over the line. Visser converted (10-3).
Immediately hereafter eighthman Erhard Lambrecht made some metres, before passing to centre Luke Carew, who scored. Visser again converted (17-3).
In the 28th minute the Bay’s hooker scored a converted try (17-10). In the dying moments of the half, Berge’s right wing Owain Engelbrecht attacked and linked with his full-back Jeandre Lukas, who rounded off in the corner, for Visser’s fine conversion from the touchline (24-10). From a 40m solo run in the 45th minute, Visser scored his team’s bonus-point try and added the extras (31-10).
With the bench coming on to the action, Berge seemed to falter, looking considerably weaker, and False Bay looked like a different team, scoring three tries in minutes for the Bay (31-29). But in the 78th minute Visser broke the Bay line on their 22, to set up his younger brother, Pierre Quinn, for his team’s match-winning score (36-29).
The visitors managed to score in the 80th minute to take the score to 36-34, earning two log points from the encounter.
Other results:
– SLA: Van der Stel-Evergreens 40-11 St Georges;
– SLC: Strand RFC 24-17 Delft, All Saints 33-20 Atlantis;
– Northern League: Sir Lowrians 24-3 Whistling Wheels, Raithby Univerals 28-0 La Motte, Gordon’s Bay Pioneers 7-12 Albions.
Fixtures for Saturday 26 April:
– SLA: Helderberg vs Unimil (Milnerton);
– SLB: Macassar vs Collegians (Lentegeur);
– SLC: All Saints vs Caledonian Roses (Helderzicht), Strand United vs Strand RC (Abbatoir);
– Northern League: Sir Lowrians vs Blue Stars United (Sir Lowry’s Pass), Raithby Universals vs Albions (Raithby), Gordon’s Bay Pioneers vs Excelsior (Stellenbosch).
