The Sanlam Boland Kavaliers' dream Carling Currie Cup run continued as they secured a bonus-point 28-20 win over the Vodacom Bulls at a bouncing, sold-out Boland Stadium in Wellington on Sunday afternoon.
It has been an incredible season for the Kavaliers so far, winning three of their four matches, including beating the Lions and Bulls in their last two games, to sit joint top of the log with the Toyota Cheetahs, just trailing them on points difference.
Against the Bulls, it was an entertaining, but ill-disciplined match, with the Kavaliers outscoring the visitors four tries to three, while six yellow cards were handed out over the game, four to the hosts and two to the visitors.
The first half was a very tight affair, with both teams relying on their forwards to try and give them the upper hand, and it was the Bulls' forwards that gave them the edge, helping them take a 12-7 lead into the halftime break.
It took until the 15th minute for the visitors to open the scoring, as they set up a lineout deep in the hosts' 22m, set the maul and were stopped short, but from the ensuing ruck, prop Jean Erasmus picked up and crashed over for the unconverted score.
Kavaliers prop Doctor Booysen was also yellow-carded for collapsing the maul, but the Bulls were unable to take advantage during his 10 minutes off.
In the 32nd minute, the Bulls again set up a lineout in the Kavaliers' 22m, got their maul rolling, and this time it couldn’t be stopped, as Cobus Grobbelaar burst out of it and over the line, with flyhalf Boeta Chamberlain adding the extras for a 12-0 lead.
With the hooter going for halftime, it was the hosts' turn to have a go from a lineout in the visitors' 22m, which led to their maul rumbling over the line for hooker Sidney Tobias to dot down, converted by flyhalf Ashlon Davids to make it 12-7 at the break.
The Bulls were first on the board early in the second half with a penalty to Chamberlain, before a flurry of action saw two tries and three yellow cards handed out over an eight-minute period.
Donavon Don is a try-scoring machine 🤖🏉
— SuperSport Rugby (@SSRugby) August 17, 2025
He goes over for his seventh of the season 🙌
📺 Stream #CurrieCup on DStv: https://t.co/0P0NNhnwKw pic.twitter.com/K2tM4yxO0o
First, Kavaliers fullback Donovan Don continued his incredible try-scoring form, scoring his seventh of the season after a pick and go from close to the line, converted by Davids to make it a one-point game.
But the hosts were then punished twice in quick succession, scrumhalf Louis Schreuder was yellow-carded for a deliberate knock on, and lock Michael Benadie followed him off a few minutes later for a high shot in a tackle.
The Bulls took advantage as they kicked into the Kavaliers' 22m, and set their dominant maul to rumble over their third try, this time flank Nama Xaba dotting down the unconverted score for a 20-14 lead.
But Bulls inside centre Cornel Smit was soon given his marching orders, also for a high tackle, which made it a 13 against 14 game for a few minutes.
In the 61st minute, the Kavaliers took the lead for the first time in the match, attacking from a scrum in the Bulls' 22m, going through a few phases before replacement loose forward Khwezi Mafu brushed off a defender and went over, with Davids' conversion putting them ahead by a point.
In the 68th minute, the Bulls received a second yellow card, as replacement hooker Siphosethu Mnebele was sent off for pulling back his opposite number during a chase for the ball.
That allowed the Kavaliers to take advantage of the extra man in the scrum four minutes later, attacking from a strong set piece in the Bulls' 22m, with replacement prop Wayrin Losper then powering over for the converted score and a 28-20 lead.
It was almost poetic that there would be one more yellow in the match, Kavaliers replacement scrumhalf Godlen Masimla sent off for a high tackle, with the game then coming to an end soon after.
SCORERS:
SANLAM BOLAND KAVALIERS: Tries - Sidney Tobias, Donovan Don, Khwezi Mafu, Wayrin Losper; Conversions - Ashlon Davids (4)
VODACOM BULLS: Tries - Jean Erasmus, Cobus Grobbelaar, Nama Xaba; Conversion - Boeta Chamberlain; Penalty - Chamberlain