Great Start for Lions and Bulls

The opening weekend of Vodacom United Rugby Championship action for the four South African franchises delivered a mixed bag of results, with the two home teams bagging victories in Gauteng, while the coastal sides suffered defeats on the road in Wales and Ireland.

The Emirates Lions and the Vodacom Bulls kicked off their campaigns with home victories over Ulster (35-22) and Edinburgh (22-16) respectively, but the travelling DHL Stormers were beaten 37-24 by the Ospreys in Bridgend, while the Hollywoodbets Sharks let slip a big lead as they went down 36-30 to Connacht in Galway

However, the result of the weekend came in Italy where Zebre Rugby recorded a famous 42-33 bonus point victory over Munster, while Leinster and Cardiff remained unbeaten after two rounds of action.

Emirates Lions break Ulster hoodoo

The Emirates Lions got their Vodacom United Rugby Championship campaign off to the start they wanted when they defeated Ulster 35-22 in Johannesburg on Saturday afternoon.

The victory was the first time in four attempts the Gauteng outfit managed to get the better of their Northern Irish opponents. The Highvelders dominated early possession, and despite Ulster’s efforts, they secured a convincing victory.

They earned a bonus point for scoring five tries, with Kade Wolhuter contributing 15 points, but Ulster left Johannesburg with a bonus point of their own for four tries, with Corrie Barrett’s late five-pointer their fourth on the day, while former Hollywoodbets Sharks wing and Blitzbok Werner Kok also crossed the whitewash for the visitors.

Scorers:

• Emirates Lions 35 (15) – Tries: Rabz Maxwane, Francke Horn, Franco Marais, Henco van Wyk, Kade Wolhuter. Conversions: Wolhuter (2). Penalty goals: Wolhuter (2).
• Ulster 22 (5) – Tries: John Cooney, Aidan Morgan, Werner Kok, Corrie Barrett. Conversion: Nathan Doak. 

Gritty Vodacom Bulls edge Edinburgh at Loftus

The Vodacom Bulls kicked off their campaign with a gritty 22-16 victory over Edinburgh at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria.

Edinburgh initially took the lead with a penalty goal from Ross Thompson in the 15^th minute, but the hosts responded with a try from Jannes Kirsten, converted by Jaco van der Walt, who later added another try to extend their lead to 12-3.

The Scots fought back with a try from Ewan Ashman, and Thompson’s conversion brought them within two points at halftime (12-10).

Thompson’s penalty goal early in the second half briefly put Edinburgh ahead by one point, but the Vodacom Bulls regained control with a try from Springbok wing Canan Moodie, converted by Boeta Chamberlain, who also added a penalty goal to stretch the lead to 22-13.

Despite Thompson reducing the deficit with another penalty goal, Edinburgh’s hopes of a comeback were dashed when Ashman received a second yellow card. The hosts held on to secure the win, while Edinburgh earned a losing bonus point.

Scorers: 

• Vodacom Bulls 22 (12) – Tries: Jannes Kirsten, Jaco van der Walt, Canan Moodie. Conversions: Van der Walt, Boeta Chamberlain. Penalty goal: Chamberlain.
•  Edinburgh 16 (10) – Try: Ewan Ashman. Conversion: Ross Thompson. Penalty goals: Ross Thompson (3).

Ospreys stand firm against DHL Stormers

The Ospreys were too good for the DHL Stormers in Bridgend, winning their clash by 37-24 as they outscored the Capetonians by four tries to two, with a late penalty try earning the Welsh club a bonus point.

In front of a passionate crowd at the Brewery Field, the hosts’ skipper Jac Morgan crossed for one of their tries, along with Reuben Morgan-Williams and Dan Edwards, who contributed 27 of their points.

While the Ospreys would have been very happy with the win after slipping to a late defeat last weekend against the Dragons, the DHL Stormers would have taken enough positives from the game, although they struggled with contestable kicks.

Towering lock JD Schickerling, who recently returned to Cape Town after three years in Japan, scored one of the DHL Stormers’ tries, while Springbok utility back Damian Willemse returned to action after months on the sidelines and landed a drop goal in the process.

Scorers:

• Ospreys 37 (13) – Tries: Jac Morgan, Reuben Morgan-Williams, Dan Edwards, Penalty try. Conversions: Edwards (3). Penalty goals: Edwards (3). Drop goal: Edwards.
• DHL Stormers 24 (16) – Tries: Leolin Zas, JD Schickerling. Conversion: Jurie Matthee. Penalty goals: Mathee (3). Drop goal: Willemse.

Hollywoodbets Sharks let slip big lead in Galway

Irish province Connacht fought back from a 20-point deficit at halftime to record a 36-30 bonus-point victory in Galway.

Despite leaking an early converted try, the KwaZulu-Natalians found their groove and scored three converted tries – two by Springbok centre Andre Esterhuizen – and two long-distance penalty goals by Jordan Hendrikse to take a 27-7 lead at the break.

But Connacht underlined why visiting teams often find it tough in Galway with four second half tries while the Hollywoodbets Sharks failed to add to their tally as they were shut out by the hosts.

The Durbanites managed to salvage a losing bonus point with a late penalty goal by Siya Masuku, but in the end, they were made to pay for allowing Connacht to dominate possession and territory.

Scorers:

• Connacht 36 (7) – Tries Dave Heffernan (2), Cathal Forde, Shane Jennings, Oisin Dowling. Conversions: Josh Ioane, Forde (3). Penalty goal: Forde.
• Hollywoodbets Sharks 30 (27) – Tries: Andre Esterhuizen (2), Gerbrandt Grobler. Conversions: Siya Masuku (3). Penalty goals: Jordan Hendrikse (2), Masuku.