What started as a roar of approval from the home crowd ended in despair. Kingswood threw away the perfect start to the match played on Saturday at the City Lords grounds by failing to cap the regular visits to the tryline by St Andrew's.
What started as a roar of approval from the home crowd ended in despair. Kingswood threw away the perfect start to the match played on Saturday at the City Lords grounds by failing to cap the regular visits to the tryline by St Andrew's.
In perfect playing conditions – a mild afternoon sun and a soft breeze blowing across the field – Kingswood scored a dream try. Five minutes into the derby, outside centre Joshua Shelley broke the line and sprinted 70 metres for an outstanding try.
Little acts, however, are the bricks of greatness. As the home crowd jigged, jumped up and shook the ground in joy, St Andrew's grouped together under the poles. Instead of scattering and looking dejectedly at the sky in the madness, they instead locked arms and stayed a unit as the conversion that took the score to 7–0 sailed over them.
The visitors stuck doggedly to the plan of playing in the Kingswood half. They kicked possession that way and banked on winning it back. A good gamble it was because St Andrew's took the game by the neck by laying siege to the home side’s territory.
With the Kingswood tryline on the immediate horizon, the defence could do little to prevent St Andrew's from planting flags on the other side. Penetration by the visiting forwards made Kingswood’s defensive strategies moot.
While Kingswood took three or four men to bring down a St Andrew's runner and try to win the breakdown area, the visitors used the extra men with much effect out wide. St Andrew's scored seven tries. The difference on the day was that ability of the visitors to spread themselves and create extra runners.
Also, the interplay between the backs and forwards has to be commended. The forwards bashed the line, eliminating defenders and were available when the ball went wide. In this respect, flank Sintu Manjezi, hooker Garrick Bowler and the rest of the pack deserve a mention.
Try number one for St Andrew's was scored by centre Ryan Horne, not long after the Kingswood opener. Horne silenced the crowd by diving, unchallenged in the corner after Kingswood ran out of defenders.
Try number two, Kingswood fell victim to the brilliance of wing Mbulelo Mama, who turned everything he touched to gold. He got hold of the ball after a good passage of play and chipped it over the defence for a teammate to score.
The same blueprint was followed for the third try – kick into opposition territory, ball won back, forwards suck in defenders and an overlap created for outside centre Ethan Fortuin.
By the end of the first half, to the shock of the thousands of gathered supporters, the Kingswood line had been crossed four times. It seemed as though St Andrew's had fielded a team of 20 with the extra numbers they were creating.
The home team has to be commended for playing till the end. Even after the fifth and the sixth try were scored in the second half without reply and with the score at 36–7, Kingswood played hard. Their diehard, last-quarter efforts were rewarded with two tries that added respectability to the scoreline.
But the final 43–19 score was a result of St Andrew's running a better system of rugby. The structures that have been instituted by director of rugby Alan Miles and coach Garry Posthumus were self evident.
The visitors revealed a much improved model of playing. It sparkled and dazzled. The home team might have put up a fight but their trusted jalopy couldn’t measure and was left spluttering, unable to catch up.
