Queen's beat Cambridge

After missing rugby because of the strike, the Queen's College 1st XV concluded the first half of their season with a thrilling 52-12 victory over a rated Cambridge High side on the Rec on Saturday afternoon.

Despite a strong wind, many passages of entertaining, flowing rugby were provided by both teams. With the wind at their backs in the first half, Cambridge enjoyed a substantial territorial and possession advantage, but were unable to convert their possession into points thanks to a rock solid Queen's defence. For Cambridge, prop Dylan Berndt featured well on the crash ball, while flyhalf Leon Mauer impressed with some nimble footwork.

Queen's showed a willingness to run the ball and were rewarded with two well worked tries in the first half. A good turnover ball in the 7th minute enabled left wing Sbura Sithole to score, while scrumhalf Rodger Bowren capitalised on a Cambridge error to gather a loose ball close to the try-line and score.

During the last ten minutes of the first half, Cambridge enjoyed a good period of play and camped on the Queen's tryline for long periods eventually scoring a try through centre Terence Lutge. This took the half-time score to 10-7 in Queen's favour.

During the second half, Queen's turned on the gas and ran the ball at every opportunity, resulting in six spectacular tries. Some excellent linking between backs and forwards followed, with the ball taken through many phases. The hardworking Queen's forwards were able to gain the upperhand, both in the tight and the loose exchanges, allowing the backs many opportunities to run with pace and flair. Lock Samuel Borsah, No.8 Mbuyisa Mnci, prop Lazola Gcezengana, and flank Sibusiso Anthony carried the ball well in the midfield for Queen's while fullback Kholo Ramashala relished the many opportunities he had of joining the backline, to disrupt the opposition defensive lines and create space for his team-mates.

The Queen's try-scorers in the second half were Mbuyisa Mnci (2), Samuel Borsah, Lionel Cronje, Kholo Ramashala and Sibusiso Anthony, all of which were converted by Lionel Cronje.

This result would have given the Queenians confidence as they prepare for an extremely tough Cape Schools' Rugby Week hosted by Selborne in East London next week. They play Boland Landbou on Saturday 30/6, Paarl Gym on Monday 2/7 and Rondebosch on Wednesday 4/7. This challenging week of rugby will certainly be a good measure of their character and an ideal barometer to assess their standing against some of the top rugby schools in the country.

By Mike Boy