CPUT outclassed the TUT Vikings
VARSITY SHIELD WRAP: CPUT outclassed the TUT Vikings to claim a 47-10 bonus-point victory in round three at Tuks Stadium on Friday.
The reigning champions, CPUT, were in cruise control for much of the contest.
Their scrum and maul fired, and they managed to convert that dominance into a 19-3 lead inside 20 minutes.
Flyhalf Mauritz Maritz converted his own try on the stroke of half-time to give TUT some hope.
At that stage, CPUT skipper Siyasanga Ngubelanga was in the sin bin, and the Vikings were in a position to cash in on their numerical advantage.
A reckless piece of play by wing Wandile Shabalala, however, resulted in a yellow card for TUT.
CPUT touched down after that transgression to secure the four-try bonus point and reassert their dominance.
They went on to score another three tries, including an end-to-end effort in the final minute.
CPUT has accumulated maximum log points from the first two fixtures of their 2022 campaign and sit in second place on the Varsity Shield log.
While they trail the log-leaders – the UFH Blues – by three points, they have a game in hand.
The Vikings, by contrast, remain winless after three matches.
* Earlier, centre Ryan Maree and No.8 Yamkela Mzozoyana scored two tries apiece to boost the UFH Blues to a 46-0 win against Rhodes.
The Blues continue to impress via their balanced approach. While their execution occasionally let them down, their physicality at the set pieces and on defence was consistent. Maree scored two of his team’s three tries in the first half. Having amassed a 22-0 lead, the Blues went into the second stanza as heavy favourites to secure the bonus-point win.
Mzozoyana powered through some weak defence to score two tries after the break. Thereafter, the men in black maintained their intensity to score seven tries in total. The result marks the Blues’ third-straight win in this year’s tournament, and they remain in control at the top of the Varsity Shield log. The Stallions, who face the threat of relegation, are still searching for their first victory.
* In the last match of the day, a dominant display by the UKZN Impi forwards set up a 31-8 win against DUT in the KwaZulu-Natal derby. It took the Impi less than three minutes to open the scoring when tighthead prop Tristan Trollip went over from a lineout driving maul. Wing Thobani Shangase then finished a slick backline move by handing off a defender and diving over in the left corner.
In the 32nd minute, a powerful 5m scrum allowed UKZN scrumhalf and captain Johan Maritz to score a converted try that made it 17-3 at the break. Fullback Mthokozisi Hlatshwayo got DUT back into the game when he scored the first try of the second half, but another strong Impi scrum just before the strategy break resulted in a bonus-point try for No 8 Menzi Mabaso.
DUT lock Alberth Kapenda was yellow carded with 12 minutes remaining and the Impi scored almost immediately afterwards through centre Singele Mkhize.
UKZN are now third in this season’s standings and DUT fifth. However, the latter remain last on the combined 2021-22 Varsity Shield log, two points behind Rhodes, as the relegation battle heats up.
Round Three results and scorers
Rhodes 0-46 UFH Blues
Scorers
For Rhodes
None
For UFH Blues
Tries: Kamvelihle Fatyela, Ryan Maree 2, Yamkela Mzozoyana 2, Langalethu Susela, Mziyabulela Bathu
Cons: Keith Chiwara 4
Pen: Chiwara
Player That Rocks: Yamkela Mzozoyana (UFH Blues)
CPUT 47-10 TUT Vikings
Scorers
For CPUT
Tries: Iwaan Bloys, Joshua Paris, Siyasanga Ngubelanga, Roland van der Heever, Darren Alexander, Keano Cookson, Christopher Andrews
Cons: Feghon-Leigh Snyders 6
TUT Vikings
Try: Mauritz Maritz
Con: Maritz
Pen: Maritz
Player That Rocks: Joshua Paris (CPUT)
UKZN Impi 31-8 DUT
Scorers
UKZN Impi
Tries: Tristan Trollip, Thobani Shangase, Johan Maritz, Menzi Mabaso, Singele Mkhize
Cons: Jarryd Nicholls 3
DUT
Try: Mthokozisi Hlatshwayo
Pen: Hlatshwayo
Player That Rocks: Wilhelm Fenske (UKZN Impi)
Round Four fixtures (Sunday, March 20, Tuks Stadium)
* DUT vs CPUT (15:00)
* UFH Blues vs WSU All Blacks (17:00)
* TUT Vikings vs UKZN Impi (19:00)
Source: @varsityshield
* Photo credit: ASEM Engage/Catherine Kotze