Currie Cup: Lions secure semifinal spot with Griffons thrashing, Griquas pip WP

Griquas 37-29 Western Province

In a gripping finale on Friday in Kimberley, Griquas clinched a dramatic 37-29 win over Western Province in Kimberley, thanks to a last-minute try from scrumhalf Bobby Alexander.

This thrilling encounter, which closed out the Currie Cup season for both teams, saw Griquas secure the sixth spot on the standings, finishing just ahead of WP.

The match was a high-octane affair from the start. Griquas took a 20-15 lead into halftime after an impressive early performance, with wing Dylan Maart and lock Dylan Sjoblom scoring tries to put them 17-3 ahead.

DHL Western Province, boosted by the return of several senior players, fought back with determination. Their captain, Dan du Plessis, scored twiceâ”once before and once after halftime.

The lead fluctuated throughout the second half, with Province's centre Damian Markus scoring in the 69th minute. Griquas had a try disallowed for a forward pass with just five minutes remaining.

Despite this setback, Griquas managed to earn a penalty in their own 22, which they utilized to advance upfield. In the dying moments, Alexander's swift run secured the winning try, sealing a memorable victory for Griquas.

Lions 62-5 Griffons

The Lions clinched the top position in the Currie Cup standings with a commanding 62-5 victory over the Griffons in Johannesburg, scoring 10 tries in a dominant display of rugby.

The home side ran in five tries in each half with number eight Jarod Cairns, wingers Rabz Maxwane and Boldwin Hansen as well as replacement flanker JC Pretorius all scoring a brace while lock Darrien Landsberg and flanker Renzo du Plessis added their mark to the score sheet. Flyhalf Kade Wolhuter landed six conversions.

The Griffons showed a lot of enterprise and frustrated the Lions in the opening four minutes, but after sustained pressure by the home side with Naude getting them on the front foot with a solid carry, Steyn gave the ball away to Landsberg who went over for the opening score in the fifth minute.

The Lions went back on the attack and a perfectly executed kick from the base of the ruck by Nico Steyn saw Maxwane tap the ball back into the hands of Jarod Cairns who went in for the Lions' second try. Ten minutes later the Lions had an attacking lineout of which Renzo du Plessis went over to dot down and extend his 2024 record with his 10th try of the campaign.

Maxwane burst through a gap for the bonus-point try in the 33rd minute before three minutes later Boldwin Hansen chased the ball kicked ahead and dotted down for the score.

The Lions started the second half a little slow but it didn't take too long to get their flow going as in the 47th minute – after good ball retention and patience on attack, Renzo du Plessis set up Maxwane to bag his second score of the evening.

Moments later, the Lions got possession back after the Griffons lost it and Sanele Nohamba nailed a cross kick for Hansen to chase on which he kicked ahead into the in-goal area and dot it down for a brace in the 56th minute.

The Griffons finally got on the scoreboard in the 59th minute when Van den Hever went over for the visitors' only score of the evening. JC Pretorius responded with a try off the back of a maul in the 64th minutes which Kade Wolhuter converted to bring up the half century for the home side. Jarod Cairns then found a gap and ran it in for the score in the 73rd minute.

The Lions weren't done yet, as in the 78th minute attacking from their own half – they got themselves into the Griffons 22 metre area and under penalty advantage showed great handling to get the ball in the hands of JC Pretorius who shrugged Kota off to seal a near faultless Lions performance.