The World Cup finally kicks off in England on Friday night. The four-year wait is over and rugby-lovers from all corners of the globe will be licking their lips for another cracking tournament.
However, as with most things, Cape Town will be somewhat delayed because the focus of the people in the Mother City will only shift to rugby’s showpiece event the next day. And it’s not because the Springboks start their campaign against Japan on Saturday.
It’s because John Dobson and his Western Province side have a score to settle against the Blue Bulls when they meet in a Currie Cup clash at Newlands on Friday night.
In their first meeting of the season in Pretoria last month, WP’s arch-rivals put them to the sword in an exhibition of lethal counter-attacking play. The 47-29 drubbing was also Province’s first defeat against the Bulls in the Currie Cup in three years.
But while revenge will be at the top of the menu, the clash will also have lots of significance as far as the Currie Cup log is concerned.
If WP manage a bonus-point win at home, they will join the second-placed Bulls on 25 points in the standings.
Following that defeat at Loftus, and another inept performance a week later against the Free State Cheetahs, WP have bounced back with back-to-back bonus-point wins over Griquas and the Sharks to propel them back into contention for a home semi-final.
The Golden Lions, who beat the Bulls 36-28 in a thrilling clash at Loftus on Saturday night, are nine points ahead of WP and on course for top spot. The Lions, who are basically playing with their Super Rugby side, are performing well but the Bulls exposed some shortcomings in an exhilarating second half on Saturday. WP play the Lions at Ellis Park on October 2.
“Tonight was very important for us in terms of trying to secure a home semi-final,” Dobson said after their 37-27 win over the Sharks on Saturday.
“I think the Lions are the best team in the competition, and for the rest it’s going to be a bit of a dog-fight.”
It seems like WP are getting it together, especially after producing their best display of 2015 in the second half of their win at Kings Park.
After trailing 10-17 at the break, Province scored three quality tries in 12 minutes with good attacking play, aided by some average Sharks defending.
One of the hallmarks of WP’s season so far has been the number of balls they have turned over, either at the breakdown or via mistakes in open play.
And the first half followed a similar pattern after they took an early lead through a Seabelo Senatla try.
But after the hairdryer treatment at the break from the bald-headed Dobson, they came out and held on to possession a lot more in the second half. “They got some very stern words. They got a roasting for making too many mistakes and poor discipline,” Dobson said.
“We had to change (in the second half). We were beaten by their kicking game, so we said we have to be more enterprising. We knew about the kicking game, but we just had to get going in terms of our attack.”
Tries by flank Rynhardt Elstadt, wing Dillyn Leyds and replacement hooker Bongi Mbonambi certainly changed the course of the game.
But it was also the performance of a few rookies which would’ve pleased Dobson. The likes of flyhalf Robert du Preez, who replaced the injured Kurt Coleman on Friday, new inside centre Huw Jones and fetcher Chris Cloete put in a strong shift on the night.
The WP scrum was also fantastic in the second half, and loosehead prop Oli Kebble helped WP see out the match by earning penalties in this department.
Cloete, though, deserves special mention. His work-rate must be right up there with the best in the competition, while his ability to protect the ball at the breakdown is also giving WP a bit of insurance.
Dobson is a hard man to please, but he was chuffed with Cloete’s contribution.
“He gave away four or five penalties and kicked a chip in their 22 when we were trying to pull away,” the coach said. “But he played well and his work-rate is phenomenal.” - Cape Argus