Bulls and Boland surge ahead in Women’s Premier Division

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  • Post published:April 29, 2024

The Bulls Daisies and Sanlam Boland Dames kept their unbeaten records intact in the third round of the Women’s Premier Division with big victories over EP Queens and Golden Lions Women respectively on Saturday, while Border Ladies and DHL Western Province remained in the top four with wins over the Sharks and Free State Women.

Crowds in Pretoria, Johannesburg, Cape Town and East London were entertained with a barrage of tries as the attacking flair of the front runners proved too much for their opponents.

The Bulls Daisies were in a different class to the EP Queens at Loftus Versfeld, scoring their first century of the season by winning 120-0 in a match that showed the difference between a professional and an amateur set-up, and the 18 tries without reply was proof.

The host team almost scored at will and were 63-0 up at the break. There was no respite in the second half from the defending champions as they kept the scoreboard ticking until the final play.

No less than three players, scrumhalf Lucky Nkhumishe, and wings Unathi Mali and Patience Mokone, scored hat-tricks. Jakkie Cilliers added 15 conversions and scored a try for a personal tally of 35 points.

Down the road in Johannesburg, a hat-trick by Springbok Women wing Nomawethu Mabange paved the way for a third Sanlam Boland Dames win on the trot and a first away from home, as they beat the Golden Lions Women by 50-5 at Emirates Airline Park.

A fantastic second half display by the visitors, who were up 17-5 at the break, resulted in a very good win for Boland.

They were rocked on their heels early on though as the home side took them on in the scrums – a Boland strength – and generally took the game to their opponents.

Some tactical changes for Boland 30 minutes in changed their scrumming fortunes and with steady ball going towards the likes of Mabenge, it was just a matter of time before they were free flowing on attack.

At DHL Stadium in Cape Town, DHL WP proved far too slick for the Free State Women, winning 59-27 (halftime 31-12) in a match that yielded 13 tries.

The Capetonians’ backline enjoyed the streams of possession coming their way all afternoon and scored eight of their nine tries.

The visitors also had two players in the bin for infringements – one in each half – and that did not help their cause at all. They scored four tries though, which earned the Free Staters their first point on the log and moved them away from last place.

The Border Ladies secured a well-deserved 45-17 win over the Sharks Women in East London to claim a second victory in as many weeks. They were only leading 19-7 at the break, but like they did against EP Queens last weekend, delivered a strong second half performance to secure a full-house of log points.

Springbok Women midfielder Aphiwe Ngwevu was a handful all afternoon and scored a brace for the home side, while her midfield partner, Thando Hena, also had the crowd at Baysville High School on their feet with two well-taken tries.

The Sharks Women will be disappointed in the defeat after a good win last weekend, but they could not match the tempo and rhythm of the home side.

Scorers:

DHL Western Province 59 (31), Free State Women 27 (12)
WP – Tries: Mari Dalhouzie, Alicia Willemse, Voice Ndou (3), Raeeqah Hendricks (2), Camelitha Malone (2). Conversions: Willemse (7).
FS – Tries: Anzel Venter, Kamohelo Makoele, Nomfundo Pampiri, Sikholiwe Mdletshe. Conversions: Inge Stander (2).

Border Ladies 45 (19), Sharks Women 17 (7)
Border – Tries: Aphiwe Ngwevu (2), Thando Hena (2), Zintle Holofela, Yandiswa Nobanda, Abongile Gcwememe. Conversions: Pinkie Touto (5).
Sharks – Tries: Phatheka Dzanibe (2), Tayla Kinsey. Conversion: Mary Zulu.

Bulls Daisies 120 (63), EP Queens 0 (0)
Bulls – Tries: Asithandile Ntoyanto (2), Xolelwa Diliza, Rachelle du Plessis, Lusanda Dumke (2), Lucky Nkhumishe (3), Unathi Mali (3), Jakkie Cilliers, Patience Mokone (3), Sanelisiwe Charlie, Naima Hlatshwayo. Conversions: Cilliers (15).

Golden Lions Women 5 (5), Sanlam Boland Dames 50 (17)
Lions – Try: Aviwe Hlongwana.
Boland – Tries: Nomawethu Mabenge (3), Nokubonga Siko, Theresa Ruiters, Cuma Qawe, Demi Nel, Veroeshka Grain. Conversions: Qawe (5).

Issued by SA Rugby Communications

Photo by Bulls Daisies Twitter