Lion-hearted Jaco the hero
The Lions have set up a repeat of last year’s Currie Cup final against WP with a hard-fought semi-final win over the Cheetahs.
|||Johannesburg – The Lions set up a repeat of last year’s Absa Currie Cup final against Western Province with a hard-fought victory over the Cheetahs in the second semi-final at Ellis Park on Saturday.
The big hero for the hosts was captain Jaco Kriel, who scored two outstanding tries and led his team’s charge in the second period after being out-gunned by the visitors in the first half.
Kriel, who’s led the side in the absence of Warren Whiteley this year, was simply brilliant yesterday, ensuring his side got on top in the latter stages of a surprisingly closely-contested encounter.
The win gave the Lions a record of 11 out of 11 for the season and should they beat Province – winners over the Bulls at Loftus Versfeld on Friday in the first play-off – they’ll become the first side in years to go unbeaten in a season.
Coach Johan Ackermann’s men will be desperate to make up for their defeat at Newlands last year after going down 19-16 on a day when Marnitz Boshoff failed with the boot.
And it was the Lions No10 who wasn’t far behind Kriel in helping his side to the final match of the season, kicking every shot at goal for a record of nine out of nine and a contribution of 23 points.
It was a thrilling match, with the lead changing seven times over the 80 minutes.
The Lions may have come out on top at the end, but the Cheetahs – poor during a campaign that saw them register just three wins and two draws – played a major part in this fabulous advert for Currie Cup rugby.
Franco Smith’s men weren’t given much of a chance going into the game, but they gave as good as they got, never stood back for the Lions and, with a little more luck – and accuracy off the kicking tee – may have pulled off a major surprise.
If Boshoff flew every ball through the uprights, the Cheetahs’ two kickers – Niel Marais and later Sias Ebersohn – missed four conversions and allowed eight points to go begging.
Also, the visitors were reduced to 14 men on two occasions in the second period after first Boom Prinsloo and then Maks van Dyk were sin-binned.
The Cheetahs dominated the first period, out-scoring the Lions two tries to one, with the log-leaders battling to find any rhythm and continuity in their play; perhaps because the majority of players sat out the final round-robin game the previous week, having already qualified for the semis.
But if the first 40 was a rather drab affair, the second half was sensational. Promising lock Lourens Erasmus finished off after some excellent handling by his teammates in a counter-attack by the Lions to put his side 20-16 up, before the Cheetahs hit back through tires by replacement Gerhard Olivier and Marais, the flyhalf’s second of the afternoon.
Boshoff reduced the deficit to five points with a penalty and then the Lions regained the lead when referee Jaco van Heerden awarded the hosts a penalty try, and sent Prinsloo to the bin.
Replacement No10 for the Cheetahs, Ebersohn, crossed the whitewash to put his team in front again, but Kriel’s second try – after a powerful run along the touchline in which he brushed aside three tacklers – put the Lions four ahead.
Two further penalties by Boshoff sealed the Lions’ place in the final.
Golden Lions (13) 43
Tries: Kriel (2), Erasmus, Penalty try; Conversions: Boshoff (4); Penalties: Boshoff (5)
Free State Cheetahs (16) 33
Tries: Venter, Prinsloo, Olivier, Marais, Ebersohn; Conversion: Marais; Penalties: Marais (2