Police v Rovers in club final

Pretoria Police will play College Rovers in the 2012 SARU National Club Championship Final after both teams recorded impressive semifinal wins at the Impala Club in Rustenburg on Wednesday.

And in a unique twist, the Plate final will also be contested by Police and Rovers teams, after Bloemfontein Police and Welkom Rovers went through to an all-Free State province decider after victories over Noordelikes and Naka Bulls respectively.

College Rovers, who won the national title in 2010, advanced to their fourth Final in seven years with a clinical 72-10 victory over Border champions Old Selbornians, who battled manfully but were no match for the streetwise and super-fit KwaZulu-Natalians.

It was Rovers’ 78th win in 82 matches since the start of the 2009 season, an incredible streak made all the more impressive by the fact that it includes four Club Champs campaigns in addition to KwaZulu-Natal league and Cup matches.

“We’re very happy to get through and now it’s a case of who's got the most left in the tank,” said Rovers’ coach Robert du Preez, the former Springbok scrumhalf. “The guys played well today and they know what they need to do now because they've been here before. We can’t wait for Friday.”

In the other semifinal, two tries to wing Michael Nienaber, a late score from fellow wing Ruan van Loo and 15 points from the boot of flyhalf Dillon Laubscher allowed Pretoria Police, the 1995 and 1996 national club champions, to advance to the final for the fourth time after a 35-25 win over hosts Rustenburg Impala.

“It was a very tough game but I'm very, very proud of my players,” said Police skipper Nico Luus. “All the hard work has been worth it and now we have one more hurdle left to clear. We’ve had a very successful season but now we have to finish the job.”

Day Four fixtures (Friday, September 21):

Plate Final

13.00 - Bloemfontein Police v Welkom Rovers

Cup Final

15.00 - College Rovers v Pretoria Police

                                

Day Three results (Wednesday, September 19):

Cup semifinals

The scorers:

For College Rovers:

Tries: Wilkinson, Verster 2, Mtembu 2, Adam, Stoltz 2, Specman, Robbertse.

Cons: Dannhauser 3, De Kock 5

Pens: Dannhauser 2

For Old Selbornians:

Try: Rogers

Con: Warner

Pen: Warner

For Rustenburg Impala:

Tries: Lubbe, Jooste, Williamson

Cons: Kok 2

Pens: Kok 2

For Pretoria Police:

Tries: Van Loo 2, Nienaber 2

Cons: Laubscher 3

Pens: Laubsher 2

DG: Laubscher.

Plate semifinals

For Noordelikes:

Try: Smith

Con: Byleveldt

For Bloemfontein Police:

Tries: Meyer, Shepperson, Hertzog

Cons: Du Plessis 3

Pens: Du Plessis 2

For Naka Bulls:

Tries: Nel 2

Cons: Boshoff

Pens: Boshoff 2, Mulder 2

For Welkom Rovers:

Tries: Cocken, De Klerk, Ball, Klopper

Cons: Santos 2, Van Wyk.

Pens: Santos 3

Day Two results (Monday, September 17):

Cup quarterfinals

Old Selbornians 28-26 Brakpan

College Rovers 41-30 Despatch

Durbanville-Bellville 25-36 Pretoria Police

Rustenburg Impala 31-19 Roodepoort

Plate quarterfinals

Naka Bulls 25-23 Villagers Worcester

Blanco 22-37 Welkom Rovers

Noordelikes 38-30 Witrivier

Bloemfontein Police 22-17 Ore Sishen

Day One results (Saturday, September 15):

Roodepoort 26-12 Naka Bulls                     

College Rovers 61-0 Noordelikes                                            

Bloemfontein Police 33-43 Old Selbornians

Durbanville-Bellville 53-20 Blanco                                              

Pretoria Police 43-12 Welkom Rovers            

Ore Sishen 0-28 Brakpan                                                       

White River 10-72 Despatch                                         

Rustenburg Impala 53-21 Villagers Worcester