Helpmekaar College produced a scintillating display of attacking rugby at Noord Suid, running in eight tries to dismantle Boland Landbou 50-22 in a match that showcased their ability to strike from anywhere on the park.
The Johannesburg outfit were absolutely electric with ball in hand, using potent wide-wide play to stretch Boland’s defensive structures to breaking point from the opening whistle.
Helpmekaar struck first, spreading the ball through multiple phases before finding space out wide to score. At 5-0, the tone was set. Boland responded with a penalty to narrow the gap to 5-3, but it was merely a brief respite from the onslaught.
In the 26th minute, Helpmekaar’s phase play began to overwhelm the visitors. Building through multiple phases, quick hands created an overlap, and winger Zuan Krige crashed over in the corner to make it 10-3.
Three minutes later, fullback Xander van Niekerk showcased his class, running a superb attacking line and beating two defenders with pace and footwork to dot down under the sticks. The conversion pushed Helpmekaar’s lead to 17-3, and Boland were starting to look shell-shocked.
The 33rd minute brought another moment of pure rugby intelligence. Helpmekaar attacked the vacuum from a lineout, and when Ruan Bester broke away from the set piece, he delivered a perfectly-timed pass to Ethan Lourens, who came steaming onto a hard line and powered over. At 24-3, Helpmekaar were cruising into the break with a commanding advantage.
Boland Landbou, to their credit, refused to roll over. Early in the second half, they found their rhythm through brutal forward carries, repeatedly hitting up into the Helpmekaar defensive line.
Helpies defended like lions, throwing bodies into every breakdown and channel. But eventually, even the strongest walls crumble under constant pressure. Boland sniped over the line, and Du Toit Brink emerged from the pile of bodies with the ball. Game on at 24-8.
Four minutes later, Boland struck again. Inside centre Cobus Immelman produced a brilliant line break. They attacked wide once more, but Helpmekaar’s scramble defence held firm. Steyn Lamprecht spotted space around the ruck and simply fell over the line to make it 24-15. The visitors were well and truly back in this contest.
But champions respond when challenged. In the 50th minute, Zuan Krige found space out wide from an attacking scrum to bag his brace and stretch the lead to 29-15.
Helpmekaar continued to turn the screws, extending their advantage to 36-15 before John van Druten cut through some woeful Boland defending from a lineout with three minutes remaining. At 42-15, the result was beyond doubt.
Boland immediately hit back through powerhouse prop Dee-Em De Kock, who used his considerable bulk to crash over close to the line. At 43-22, they’d at least salvaged some pride.
But Helpmekaar saved the best for last. As the siren sounded, they turned over possession and transitioned brilliantly, getting the ball wide with lightning speed. Xander van Niekerk received it inside his own 22 and burned off the cover defence, racing 80 metres to score under the sticks as the final whistle blew.
The final scoreline of 50-22 was a fair reflection of Helpmekaar’s attacking brilliance, though Boland’s second-half fightback showed real character.
