Mike Greenaway
The Lions showed grit to outlast Griquas 36-28 in a Currie Cup encounter in chilly Kimberley yesterday.
The week before Griquas had been hammered by the Pumas in Nelspruit while the Lions had been shocked by the Sharks in Durban. It was the Joburg team that showed iron resolve in the last quarter to return to winning ways.
It was a weekend of high-scoring matches in the fifth round of the tournament and it was the Bulls and the Cheetahs that set the tone when they drew 34-34 in Bloemfontein on Friday night.
On Saturday, Western Province were unconvincing in beating the down-and-out Griffons 39-17 in the Cape, and in the later game, the Pumas and the Sharks finished 44-44 after each side seemed to have nailed the spoils with a late shot at goal.
The Sharks had been down 27-8 at half-time but fought back well to be 44-41 ahead with seconds left on the clock only to concede a scrum penalty. Pumas centre Clinton Swart continued an excellent night of goal-kicking by slotting home a long-ranger effort to rescue a draw.
But having come so close, it was no wonder Sharks coach JP Pietersen was disappointed.
“We are pleased that we can take three points home, but we need to play better,” he said of his team’s poor start. “We can’t play a game of two halves. We need to start well and compete for 80 minutes.”
But Pietersen was pleased that his team showed up in the second half when it looked like the Pumas were going to run away with the game.
“The exciting part about it is that these players are so young,” the coach said. “Eighty percent of this group is under 23. They are learning and growing and that growth is immense.
“That is exciting as a coach.”
This week, the Lions host the Pumas on Saturday (3pm), the Griffons travel to the Bulls (5pm), Western Province are at home to the Cheetahs at 7pm, and the Sharks host Griquas on Sunday (3pm).