Hawies Fourie believes the Sanlam Boland Cavaliers’ gritty 37-35 Carling Currie Cup Premier Division win against the Toyota Cheetahs was the perfect advertisement for inspiring hope in the Boland region.
The Cavas had to claw their way back from a 35-27 deficit in the final 10 minutes at Boland Rugby Stadium in Wellington, with winger Donovan Don scoring in the 88th minute to secure the bonus-point win.
This was Boland’s first game back in the Currie Cup top flight since 2016, and coach Fourie’s team were adamant to get their campaign off to the perfect start.
It all seemed to go their way after the first half, leading 27-14. But poor discipline, especially at scrum time, where they conceded eight penalties, allowed the visitors back into the game.
The visitors scored three tries to take a 35-27 lead. But that is when the Cavas showed character, with captain Marlyn Williams reminding his teammates why and who they are playing for in their first season back in the Currie Cup in nearly a decade.
“I said to the guys, 'You must go out and ask yourself, did you give 100 per cent?' And I think the question was answered by what the scoreboard said at the end of the game," Williams said. “We are a really passionate team and union, and we are really happy with this result.”
INSPIRING THE COMMUNITY
To which Fourie added, after watching his team pull a rabbit out of the hat to win the game: “I am not sure what the captain thought, but my call was to go for the corner. I sent a message down to the medical team on the field. I think they had the same thing in mind. I just felt that we were outplayed for about 30 minutes, and then we got back into the game, and we had to go big by kicking to the corner and try to win the game, rather than kicking to poles for a draw.
“The purpose of this team is to inspire our community. It is really important to us to show the people in the Boland that we can compete at a high level and inspire the young kids to play rugby and make a living from it.
“We need to give back to the community, and the way that we played and the character that we showed in the last six to seven minutes of the game will inspire a lot of people.
“We would just like to thank everyone who took the time on a Sunday afternoon to come and support us here in Wellington, we appreciate it.”
However, Fourie asked his team to park the edge of the seat wins for now and learn to put opposition teams away when they have their foot on their necks.
“It was a game of two halves, where we started well and put a lot of pressure on the Cheetahs, he explained.
“After halftime, we took the foot off the pedal, and we conceded quite a number of penalties just before the end. The penalty count just before the end was eight penalties to one against us. That broke our momentum, and we could not get anything going on the attack.
“Then luckily in the last three to five minutes we got a bit of possession and the guys showed a lot of character keeping the ball through many phases playing from our own tryline and scoring from about 100m and a bit with plenty of phases in between. It was hard work; we made it difficult for ourselves, so we are going to go and have a look at what we can rectify.”
After experiencing a bit of Déjà vu as he watched his men throw away a lead, Fourie added: “In the SA Cup, it also happened to us. We get a lead and then let teams off the hook, and that is something we have got to improve on.”
VICTOR INJURY
During the game, new signing Laurence Victor’s debut was cut short by an injury after limping off the field in the deciding moments.
“I don’t think it was that serious, and I suspect he will be okay, and we have Doc Booysen as well; that can come in and play. We will assess those injuries tomorrow [Monday, 28 July]. After a game like the one we just had and in a shortened Currie Cup, the guys that are in the saddle would like to play, and I would expect that he will be okay to play in the next game.”
This weekend, the Sanlam Boland Cavaliers will prepare to hit the road when they face off against the Suzuki Griquas in another Sunday showdown at Kimberley’s Suzuki Stadium.