The Cheetahs beat the Kings 29-20 in Port Elizabeth in the first of seven local PRO14 derbies that took place on Super Saturday.
Wins were also claimed by Connacht, Scarlets, Zebre and Ospreys while Munster and Ulster drew, which means Edinburgh go into the knockout stages, this on the back of winning the 1872 Cup after beating Glasgow at Murrayfield.
Kings 20-29 Cheetahs
The Cheetahs secured a PRO14 quarter-final berth with a hard-fought 29-20 victory over local rivals the Southern Kings in Port Elizabeth.
The Kings, who were hunting only their second PRO14 win, began the brighter, bossing the early exchanges and were rewarded with the game's opening try when Ntabeni Dukisa dotted down with five minutes gone on the clock.
However, the Cheetahs hit back on the 20-minute mark when Paul Schoeman crashed over to level matters at 10-10. Soon after, Kings fly-half Masixole Banda restored the home side's lead with a penalty.
But the Cheetahs would ensure they took a 22-13 lead into the interval courtesy of two further tries from Niel Marais and Uzair Cassiem before referee Cwengile Jadezweni brought the first-half to a close.
The Kings began the first as they started the second and grabbed a try through wing Harlon Klaasen to cut the deficit to two. But the Cheetahs would have the last laugh as captain Francois Venter dotted down to secure the victory.
The scorers:
For Kings:
Tries: Dukisa, Claasen
Cons: Banda 2
Pens: Banda 2
For Cheetahs:
Tries: Schoeman, Marais, Schoeman, Venter
Cons: Marais 3
Pen: Marais
Kings: 15 Yaw Penxe, 14 Michael Makase, 13 Jacques Nel, 12 Ntabeni Dukisa, 11 Harlon Klaasen, 10 Masixole Banda, 9 Godlen Masimla, 8 Dries van Schalkwyk, 7 Martinus Burger, 6 Khaya Majola, 5 Bobby de Wee, 4 Stephan Greeff, 3 Rossouw de Klerk, 2 Stephan Coetzee, 1 Justin Forwood
Replacements: 16 Tango Balekile, 17 Dayan van der Westhuizen, 18 Luvuyo Pupuma, 19 Lindokuhle Welemu, 20 Lubabalo Mtyanda, 21 Lusanda Badiyana, 22 JP Smith, 23 JC Roos
Cheetahs: 15 Clayton Blommetjies, 14 William Small-Smith, 13 Francois Venter (c), 12 Clinton Swart, 11 Sibahle Maxwane, 10 Niel Marais, 9 Tian Meyer, 8 Uzair Cassiem, 7 Oupa Mohoje, 6 Paul Schoeman, 5 Reniel Hugo, 4 Charl Wegner, 3 Johan Coetzee, 2 Torsten van Jaarsveld, 1 Ox Nche
Replacements: 16 Jacques du Toit, 17 Charles Marais, 18 Tom Botha, 19 Rynier Bernardo, 20 Henco Venter, 21 Zee Mkhabela, 22 Johan Goosen, 23 Lloyd Greeff
Referee: Cwengile Jadezweni (South Africa)
Assistant referees: Quinton Immelman (South Africa), Rodney Bonaparte (South Africa)
Television match official: Johan Greeff (South Africa)
Dragons 8-33 Scarlets
Scarlets booked a home quarter-final against the Cheetahs after they beat the Dragons 33-8 with a bonus point at the Principality Stadium.
A first-half try from Ryan Elias set them on their way as Scarlets went into the break leading 7-3, with the Dragons still in with a shout.
But after that Wayne Pivac's charges turned the screw with a penalty try and two crossings from Tadhg Beirne wrapping up the maximum.
There was still time for Steff Evans to get over five minutes from time, with the Dragons having scored just one try, through Jared Rosser.
The scorers:
For Dragons:
Try: Rosser
Pen: Robson
Yellow Card: Coleman
For Scarlets:
Tries: Elias, Penalty try, Beirne 2, S Evans
Cons: Halfpenny 3
Dragons: 15 Hallam Amos, 14 Ashton Hewitt, 13 Zane Kirchner, 12 Connor Edwards, 11 Jared Rosser, 10 Arwel Rosbon, 9 Charlie Davies, 8 James Benjamin, 7 Aaron Wainwright, 6 Harri Keddie, 5 Rynard Landman, 4 Joe Davies, 3 Lloyd Fairbrother, 2 Elliot Dee (c), 1 Thomas Davies
Replacements: 16 Liam Belcher, 17 Luke Garrett, 18 Dan Suter, 19 Max Williams, 20 Taine Basham, 21 Sarel Pretorius, 22 Adam Warren, 23 Joe Goodchild
Scarlets: 15 Leigh Halfpenny, 14 Ioan Nicholas, 13 Scott Williams (c), 12 Hadleigh Parkes, 11 Steff Evans, 10 Rhys Patchell, 9 Gareth Davies, 8 Will Boyde, 7 James Davies, 6 Tadhg Beirne, 5 Steve Cummins, 4 Lewis Rawlins, 3 Samson Lee, 2 Ryan Elias, 1 Rob Evans
Replacements: 16 Ken Owens, 17 Phil Price, 18 Werner Kruger, 19 David Bulbring, 20 John Barclay, 21 Jonathan Evans, 22 Dan Jones, 23 Steff Hughes
Referee: Lloyd Linton (Scotland)
Assistant referees: Adam Jones (Wales), Gwyn Morris (Wales)
Television match official: Leo Colgan (Ireland)
Connacht 47-10 Leinster
The retiring John Muldoon was given a fitting send-off at the Sportsground as Connacht strolled to a 47-10 win over high-flying Leinster.
They began well when Niyi Adeolokun crossed after three minutes, with Tiernan O'Halloran and Kieran Marmion scoring before the break.
Second-half scores from Adeolokun, Marmion, Bundee Aki and Caolin Blade wrapped up the maximum, with Muldoon kicking a conversion.
Leinster were already assured a home semi and named a much-changed side from their European XV, with Barry Daly their lone try scorer.
The scorers:
For Connacht:
Tries: Adeolokun 2, O'Halloran, Marmion 2, Aki, Blade
Cons: Carty 4, Ronaldson, Muldoon
For Leinster:
Try: Daly
Con: Carbery
Pen: Carbery
Connacht: 15 Tiernan O’Halloran, 14 Niyi Adeolokun, 13 Tom Farrell, 12 Bundee Aki, 11 Matt Healy, 10 Jack Carty, 9 Kieran Marmion, 8 John Muldoon (c), 7 Jarrad Butler, 6 Eoin McKeon, 5 Quinn Roux, 4 Gavin Thornbury, 3 Finlay Bealham, 2 Shane Delahunt, 1 Denis Buckley
Replacements: 16 Tom McCartney, 17 Peter McCabe, 18 Conor Carey, 19 Ultan Dillane, 20 Eoghan Masterson, 21 Caolin Blade, 22 Craig Ronaldson, 23 Darragh Leader
Leinster: Joey Carbery, 14 Barry Daly, 13 Tom Daly, 12 Noel Reid, 11 James Lowe, 10 Ross Byrne, 9 Nick McCarthy, 8 Jack Conan, 7 Peadar Timmins, 6 Max Deegan, 5 Mick Kearney, 4 Ross Molony, 3 Andrew Porter, 2 James Tracy, 1 Jack McGrath (c)
Replacements: 16 Seán Cronin, 17 Cian Healy, 18 Michael Bent, 19 Devin Toner, 20 Jordi Murphy, 21 Jamison Gibson-Park, 22 Jordan Larmour, 23 Adam Byrne
Referee: Andrew Brace (Ireland)
Assistant referees: Joy Neville (Ireland), Kieran Barry (Ireland)
Television match official: Olly Hodges (Ireland)
Benetton 17-22 Zebre
With just a single change from their shock victory over Leinster last time out, Benetton looked to build on that win in this derby clash.
In a slow start, the hosts took the lead on 22 minutes when captain Alberto Sgarbi went over by the posts after the ball broke from a scrum. Tommaso Allan added the two for a seven-point lead, but David Sisi responded before the break. Matched with a penalty from Marcello Violi, Zebre held a 8-7 lead at half-time.
That margin grew after the break with a Carlo Canna try, but the hosts took back momentum and the advantage when bodies forced Allan over the line. His conversion gave Benetton a single point lead.
Another Allan kick was soon countered by one from Violi as momentum continued to swing, the hosts only narrowly ahead as time went on.
But with 15 minutes to go, Zebre had a 19-17 buffer thanks to a third kick from Violi before his fourth penalty late on sealed the victory.
The scorers:
For Benetton:
Tries: Sgarbi 2
Cons: Allan 2
Pen: Allan
For Zebre:
Tries: Sisi, Canna
Pens: Violi 4
Benetton: 15 Jayden Hayward, 14 Tommaso Benvenuti, 13 Tommaso Iannone, 12 Alberto Sgarbi (c), 11 Monty Ioane, 10 Tommaso Allan, 9 Tito Tebaldi, 8 Nasi Manu, 7 Sebastian Negri, 6 Federico Ruzza, 5 Alessandro Zanni, 4 Marco Lazzaroni, 3 Simone Ferrari, 2 Luca Bigi, 1 Federico Zani
Replacements: 16 Hame Faiva, 17 Cherif Traore, 18 Tiziano Pasquali, 19 Marco Fuser, 20 Dean Budd, 21 Abraham Steyn, 22 Luca Sperandio, 23 Marty Banks
Zebre: 15 Matteo Minozzi, 14 Mattia Bellini, 13 Giulio Bisegni, 12 Tommaso Castello (c), 11 Giovanbattista Venditti, 10 Carlo Canna, 9 Marcello Violi, 8 David Sisi, 7 Johan Meyer, 6 Jacopo Sarto, 5 George Biagi, 4 Leonard Krumov, 3 Dario Chistolini, 2 Oliviero Fabiani, 1 Andrea Lovotti
Replacements: 16 Luhandre Luus, 17 Cruze Ah-Nau, 18 Eduardo Bello, 19 Valerio Bernabò, 20 Derick Minnie, 21 Guglielmo Palazzani, 22 Edoardo Padovani, 23 Gabriele Di Giulio
Referee: JP Doyle (England)
Assistant referees: Manuel Bottino (Italy), Gianluca Gnecchi (Italy)
Television match official: Sean Davey (England)
Munster 24-24 Ulster
The sides had only been out for a minute when Ulster made a mess of a defensive situation, conceding possession on their line allowing Duncan Williams to get in for a superb Munster start. The conversion followed but Ulster were soon back on terms.
This time it was Ulster who stole possession away in the middle and Stuart McCloskey went over on five minutes, with Johnny McPhillips levelling up.
The Ulster 10 kicked his side into the ascendancy for the first time with his first penalty of the evening, but Munster regained that lead with their second try just before the half-hour. A line-out pressed the visitors back and after a failed clearance, Brian Scott went through for a 14-10 lead.
It was Ulster’s turn to make the most of a penalty next when they recorded the fourth try in 34 minutes. Rory Best emerged from the back of a maul to dot down, and Ulster extended their half-time lead to 10 points when Best got his second just before the break.
Looking to defend the 24-14 lead, Ulster lost Luke Marshall to the sin-bin early in the second half. And almost immediately, Munster got the first points of the half. Robin Copeland, who had earlier seen yellow himself, made the most of the extra man to cut the gap down to only three.
With 12 minutes to go, JJ Hanrahan levelled up with a penalty to set up a teasing finale.
Ulster piled on the pressure late on as they looked to prolong their season, but didn’t have enough to secure a bonus-point win as their campaign ended in a draw.
The scorers:
For Munster:
Tries: Williams, Scott, Copeland
Cons: Hanrahan 3
Pen: Hanrahan
Yellow Card: Copeland
For Ulster:
Tries: McCloskey, Best 2
Cons: McPhillips 3
Pen: McPhillips
Yellow Card: Marshall
Munster: 15 Stephen Fitzgerald, 14 Calvin Nash, 13 Sammy Arnold, 12 Dan Goggin, 11 Darren Sweetnam, 10 JJ Hanrahan, 9 Duncan Williams, 8 Robin Copeland, 7 Conor Oliver, 6 Dave O’Callaghan, 5 Darren O’Shea, 4 Gerbrandt Grobler, 3 Brian Scott, 2 Mike Sherry (c), 1 James Cronin
Replacements: 16 Rhys Marshall, 17 Jeremy Loughman, 18 Stephen Archer, 19 Jean Kleyn, 20 Jack O’Donoghue, 21 James Hart, 22 Bill Johnston, 23 Shane Daly
Ulster: 15 Louis Ludik, 14 Craig Gilroy, 13 Luke Marshall, 12 Stuart McCloskey, 11 Jacob Stockdale, 10 Johnny McPhillips, 9 Dave Shanahan, 8 Nick Timoney, 7 Sean Reidy, 6 Clive Ross, 5 Iain Henderson, 4 Alan O'Connor, 3 Ross Kane, 2 Rory Best (c), 1 Callum Black
Replacements: 16 Rob Herring, 17 Andy Warwick, 18 Tom O'Toole, 19 Kieran Treadwell, 20 Chris Henry, 21 Paul Marshall, 22 Angus Curtis, 23 Tommy Bowe
Referee: Ben Whitehouse (Wales)
Assistant referees: Aled Evans (Wales), Simon Rees (Wales)
Television match official: Sean Brickell (Wales)
Cardiff Blues 23-26 Ospreys
The Judgement Day clash started with an early three points from Dan Biggar to give Ospreys the advantage.
The Blues levelled though with a 40 metre kick from Gareth Anscombe making it three apiece.
But it was the visitors who struck the first meaningful points on 18 minutes. Sam Cross moved Ospreys further up the field but it was Alun Wyn-Jones with the final piece of action for the opening try, the conversion following.
The Blues were second best for long stretches of the first half but they levelled again when Anscombe took possession, weaved his way through a couple of challenges and bounced off Tom Habberfield to make it 10-10.
And it was soon a lead for the Blues when Steven Shingler got inside the defence before feeding Garyn Smith to go down, a kick from Anscombe extending Cardiff’s lead to 20-13.
Ospreys were back on terms on 57 minutes when Biggar made the most of some poor attempted tackles to find the line, but Anscombe was again on hand to make the lead three points in favour of Blues.
But a late rally from Ospreys stole victory. Their first three points of the final 10 minutes came again from Biggar, 23-23 the score. And with time running out, a drop goal from the same man stole a 26-23 win.
The scorers:
For Cardiff Blues:
Tries: Anscombe, Smith
Cons: Anscombe 2
Pens: Anscombe 3
For Ospreys:
Tries: AW Jones, Biggar
Cons: Biggar 2
Pens: Biggar 3
Drop Goal: Biggar
Cardiff Blues: 15 Matthew Morgan, 14 Aled Summerhill, 13 Garyn Smith, 12 Steven Shingler, 11 Blaine Scully, 10 Gareth Anscombe (c), 9 Lloyd Williams, 8 Josh Turnbull, 7 Olly Robinson, 6 Macauley Cook, 5 James Down, 4 Damian Welch, 3 Taufa'ao Filise, 2 Kirby Myhill, 1 Rhys Gill
Replacements: 16 Ethan Lewis, 17 Brad Thyer, 18 Dillon Lewis, 19 Ben Murphy, 20 Alun Lawrence, 21 Lewis Jones, 22 Harri Millard, 23 Max Llewellyn
Ospreys: 15 Dan Evans, 14 Jeff Hassler, 13 Kieron Fonotia, 12 Owen Watkin, 11 Hanno Dirksen, 10 Dan Biggar, 9 Tom Habberfield, 8 James King, 7 Justin Tipuric, 6 Sam Cross, 5 Alun Wyn Jones (c), 4 Bradley Davies, 3 Dmitri Arhip, 2 Scott Otten, 1 Nicky Smith
Replacements: 16 Ifan Phillips, 17 Rhodri Jones, 18 Ma’afu Fia, 19 Adam Beard, 20 Giorgi Nemsadze, 21 Reuben Morgan-Williams, 22 Sam Davies, 23 Ashley Beck
Referee: Frank Murphy (Ireland)
Assistant referees: Dan Jones (Wales), Shane Kierans (Ireland)
Television match official: Neil Hennessey (Wales)
Edinburgh 24-19 Glasgow
Glasgow struck first blood at Murrayfield with the opening try arriving on 12 minutes. A cross-field kick from Finn Russell landed into the arms of DTH van der Merwe, and Russell added the two as the Warriors started strongly.
The lead only lasted for six minutes though because Edinburgh quickly grabbed their first try. A pass from Junior Rasolea was grasped by a scoring James Johnstone, with Sam Hidalgo-Clyne levelling off the tee.
Glasgow retook the lead with a second try four minutes later, Callum Gibbins finishing a nice move by going in under the posts.
But Edinburgh fought back before the break with the fourth try of the half. The visitors could only hold out for so long and after a prolonged spell of pressure, Jordan Lay burst through, before Edinburgh got a third and a half-time lead. Duhan van-der Merwe grabbed a kick over the top from Hidalgo-Clyne as the hosts took in a 21-14 buffer.
The second-half started slowly with Glasgow struggling to cause too many issues to the Edinburgh try line. In fact, it was the hosts who extended the gap with a penalty from Duncan Weir making it a 10 point lead with 13 minutes to play.
But Glasgow immediately hit back to narrow the gap to five points, their third try coming when Canadian Van der Merwe got his second of the night.
The visitors threw everything Edinburgh’s way in an attempt to turn the score around but ultimately came up short as Edinburgh secured the 1872 Cup.
The scorers:
For Edinburgh:
Tries: Johnstone, Lay, Van der Merwe
Cons: Hidalgo-Clyne 3
Pen: Weir
For Glasgow:
Tries: Van der Merwe 2, Gibbins
Cons: Russell 2
Edinburgh: 15 Blair Kinghorn, 14 Dougie Fife, 13 James Johnstone, 12 Chris Dean, 11 Duhan van der Merwe, 10 Jaco van der Walt, 9 Sam Hidalgo-Clyne, 8 Bill Mata, 7 Jamie Ritchie, 6 Magnus Bradbury, 5 Grant Gilchrist, 4 Ben Toolis, 3 Simon Berghan, 2 Stuart McInally (c), 1 Jordan Lay
Replacements: 16 Neil Cochrane, 17 Allan Dell, 18 WP Nel, 19 Lewis Carmichael, 20 Cornell du Preez, 21 Nathan Fowles, 22 Duncan Weir, 23 Mark Bennett
Glasgow: 15 Stuart Hogg, 14 Tommy Seymour, 13 Nick Grigg, 12 Sam Johnson, 11 DTH van der Merwe, 10 Finn Russell, 9 George Horne, 8 Ryan Wilson (c), 7 Callum Gibbins, 6 Matt Fagerson, 5 Jonny Gray, 4 Tim Swinson, 3 Zander Fagerson, 2 Fraser Brown, 1 Alex Allan
Replacements: 16 George Turner, 17 Jamie Bhatti, 18 Siua Halanukonuka, 19 Rob Harley, 20 Chris Fusaro, 21 Henry Pyrgos, 22 Peter Horne, 23 Lee Jones
Referee: Nigel Owens (Wales)
Assistant referees: Mike Adamson (Scotland), Dunx McClement (Scotland)
Television match official: Neil Paterson (Scotland)
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