The Airlink Pumas reminded friend and foe alike of their championship credentials when they overcame a slow start to run out comfortable 29-7 (halftime 15-0) winners over the DHL Stormers XXIII in a fifth-round Carling Currie Cup match played at Mbombela Stadium, Nelspruit on Saturday.
The Pumas’ bonus-point win took them to second place on the log, four points behind defending champions the Suzuki Griquas, with two rounds remaining – although with the caveat that the Toyota Cheetahs may yet leapfrog the men from Mpumalanga in the final match of the weekend, on Sunday in Pretoria against the Vodacom Bulls XV.
This possibility will not overly bother coach Jimmy Stonehouse, given that his charges began their campaign with two straight losses. This display, on the other hand, was a far more accurate representation of a team with serious title ambitions.
In a nervy and tightly-contested opening quarter, between two sides separated by just a single point on the log going into the match, the Pumas were the only team to bother the scoreboard operators when flyhalf Nevaldo Fleurs slotted a penalty in the ninth minute.
Thereafter followed a period of sustained close-quarter combat, which took place largely between the two teams’ respective 10-metre lines. Defence on both sides was rock-solid – reflective of the high-stakes nature of a contest in which defeat could potentially spell disaster for anyone harbouring last-four hopes.
The lively home crowd however finally found their full voice in the 33rd minute when a high ball spilt by Stormers right wing Joel Leotlela found its way into the hands of a flying Thomas Bursey on the breakout, the 26-year-old scrumhalf diving over near the left-hand corner for marksman Fleurs to convert with aplomb.
Stormers flanker Louw Nel opened the door to a second Pumas try on the stroke of halftime when he was adjudged to have obstructed the Lowvelders’ rush from a box kick that landed deep inside the Stormers’ 22.
The resultant penalty was expertly recycled for Fleurs to launch a pinpoint cross-kick to left wing Banie Britz, the 23-year-old former Free State speedster going over unopposed on the hooter.
The second half saw the hosts slowly turn the screw, with flanker Thabo Ndimande prominent in a number of raids upfield.
But it was the Stormers XXIII who finally – and somewhat against the run of play – broke their duck after 50 minutes when replacement flyhalf Kyle Smith put Blitzbok Mfundo Ndhlovu into a gaping hole for his team’s first try.
The 21-year-old Smith, who had earlier come on for an injured Jean-Luc du Plessis, made no mistake with the touchline conversion.
Not to be outdone, Pumas replacement hooker Jan-Henning Campher also made an immediate impact off the bench when he finished off a driving maul from a five-metre lineout in the 58th minute to stretch the lead to 15 points.
The bonus-point try came two minutes later when lock JJ Scheepers barged his way through two would-be Stormers defenders, much to the delight of Pumas coach Stonehouse.
The superb Fleurs once again made no mistake with the extra points from an acute angle to put the seal on a win that firmly put the Pumas’ title race back on track.
Round five’s remaining action sees the Vodacom Bulls XV host the Toyota Cheetahs in Pretoria on Sunday.
Thereafter follows a sprint to the play-off line for those teams still mathematically in the hunt for the semifinals of the world’s oldest provincial competition, celebrating its 135th anniversary this year.
With just two rounds remaining, jeopardy has become a very real thing for the remaining contenders, including the luckless DHL Stormers, who leave Mpumalanga without a single point to show for their efforts.
Scorers:
AIRLINK PUMAS 29 – Tries: Thomas Bursey, Banie Britz, Jan-Henning Campher, JJ Scheepers; Conversion: Nevaldo Fleurs (3); Penalty: Fleurs.
DHL STORMERS XXIII 7 – Try: Mfundo Ndhlovu
Conversion: Kyle Smith.