Joe blows the whistle on ....

The Super 14 Weekend 1

BLUES VS HURRICANES

Welcome to the new and revamped Sports Blog, proudly brought to you by Champ Marketing & Travel. To me the most exciting part of the year has finally arrived with the start of the 2010 addition of the toughest Rugby Competition in the World.

The First match dished up one of the most anticipated derby’s between two of the Tournaments real entertainers, the Blues and the Hurricanes from New Zealand.

A lot has been said about the new law interpretations but the one aspect that struck me from the first whistle was the positive impact it promises to have on the spectacle fans are desperately searching for!

While referee Stuart Dickinson had his hands full in the opening 40 with various penalties, especially at ruck time there was also some highly entertaining running rugby. Having conceded a penalty early in the match the Blues crossed the try line first through their new acquisition Stephen Brett (The former Crusaders stalwart).

The boot of Canes number 10 Willie Ripia kept the visitors in the match while Blues prop John Afoa scored his team’s second try for a 20-12 lead at the break.

Ripia added an early penalty for the Hurricanes after the interval before Hosea Gear scored an intercept try (His 17th in Super Rugby) converted by Piri Weepu as the Canes moved into the lead.

Ill discipline cost the Blues dearly as Weepu added 4 more penalties, the second of which came after Blues center Isaia Toeava became the first player to be sin binned this season.

Credit must go to the Hurricanes who scored 22 unanswered points in the second half that saw them to a 34-20 victory.

If this match is anything to go by rugby fans can look forward to a Super season!

POINTS SCORERS

BLUES (20): Tries: Stephen Brett, John Afoa, Conversions: Brett (2), Penalties: Brett (2)
HURRICANES (34): Try: Hosea Gear, Conversions: Piri Weepu (1), Penalties: Willie Ripia (5), Weepu (4)

RECORD: The Hurricanes became the first team to score nine penalties in a Super Rugby encounter

WESTERN FORCE VS BRUMBIES

From New Zealand, the Vodacom Super 14 Competition moved to Australia where the Western Force entertained fellow Aussies the Brumbies.

The Brumbies were out of the blocks in a flash as backs and forwards combined beautifully before Josh Valentine dived over for the first points of the match.
Veteran Stirling Mortlock added the 2 points moving his Super Rugby tally to 998 points.

The Force replied with a penalty through James O’Connor but the Brumbies again showed how lethal they can be on the counter attack as they punished the hosts down the left before hooker Stephen Moore collected the final pass to score the Brumbies second 5 pointer. Mortlock again made no mistake with his conversion that saw him become the first player in the history of super rugby to pass the 1000 points barrier.

As was the case in the earlier match of the day the Force kept them in touch through the boot of O’Connor who added 3 more penalties in the first half.

Mortlock and O’Connor traded penalties in what was the only scoring of the first 25 minutes in the second period.

With the match on a knife-edge, the Brumbies took the imitative with a well-worked try down the left touchline. Mortlock again played a major role while Huia Edmonds rounded off in the corner. The conversion was good as the Brumbies secured a vital victory away from home by 24 points to 15

POINTS

WESTERN FORCE (15) Penalties: James O’Connor (5)

BRUMBIES (24) Tries: Josh Velentine, Stephen Moore, Huia Edmonds, Penalties: Stirling Mortlock (1), Conversions: Mortlock (3)

VODACOM CHEETAHS VS VODACOM BULLS

The first match on South African soil was a repeat of the 2009 Absa Currie Cup final but this time the Vodacom Cheetahs enjoyed home ground advantage against the Vodacom Bulls.

The match marked a number of individual milestones that started in the tunnel as a returning to Bulls country Gary Botha and Meyer Bosman led their respective teams onto the field proudly sporting jerseys commemorating 50 caps.

With the formalities out of the way, the Cheetahs made a dream start as Lionel Mapoe scored the first try after only 21 seconds punishing Fourie Du Preez’s uncharacteristic mistake from the kick-off.

The defending champions did not have to wait long for their reply as a Morne Steyn penalty was followed up by Jaco Pretorius’s first Super rugby try in Bulls colors.

Naas Olivier slotted a penalty that saw the hosts regain the lead, all be it briefly as Morne Steyn rushed the ball through the uprights that saw him pass 500 Super Rugby points.

The Bulls ahead by 23 points to 14 moved swiftly to their bonus point after Gerhard Van Den Heever and Zane Kirchner crossed the try line extending the visitors lead to 37-17

As was the case in last years Currie Cup Final the Cheetahs were not going to give up without a fight as captain Juan Smith and speedster Jongi Nokwe answered the call as the match was back in the balance with Cheetahs trailing by only 6 points.

With both sets of supporters on the edge of their seats, one could hardly have blamed the lights for failing considering the electric play being dished up by both outfits…

The resumption had a taste of Hollywood movie magic to it as the lights and cameras were barely on before Wynand Olivier crossed the line for another action packed try.

Trailing by 10 points the Cheetahs found themselves chasing once again but this time the prey escaped as the Bulls started their campaign with a victory by 51 points to 34.
A special word must also go to Referee Jonathan Kaplan who certainly contributed to another memorable game!
POINTS
CHEETAHS (34), TRIES: Lionel Mapoe, Juan Smith, Jongi Nokwe CONVERSIONS: Naas Olivier (2) PENALTIES: Naas Olivier (5)

BULLS (51), TRIES: Jaco Pretorius, Morne Steyn, Gerhard Van Den Heever, Zane Kirchner, Wynand Olivier, Penalty Try CONVERSIONS: Morne Steyn (5), Jaque-Louis Potgieter PENALTIES: Morne Steyn (3)