A sensational hat-trick from full-back Manie Libbok secured the Blue Bulls a tight 44-42 win over the Griquas at Loftus Versveld on Friday.
Libbok’s pace and quick feet was far too much to handle for the mystified away side defenders.
The home side opened the scoring with an impressive converted try. A cross kick from fly-half Marnitz Boshoff was plucked out of the air by winger Rabs Maxwane who timed his run to perfection.
Griquas fired back with a converted try of their own courtesy of a great pick up and sprint by winger Ederies Arendse. The away side scored again soon after. Scrum-half Christiaan Meyer intercepted an attempted long pass and showed a clean pair of heels to dive in for his converted try.
Blue Bulls prop Dayan van der Westhuizen showed impressive strength and an eye for a gap to score the game’s next try. Boshoff converted to level up the scores yet again at 14-14. He followed this up with a penalty after 19 minutes to give his charges a slender lead.
Blue Bulls full-back Libbok showed unbelievable speed to score a solo converted try after collecting an up an under after 24 minutes. Minutes later, excellent hands from the away side backs down the right saw the ball land in Arendse’s hands yet again. He stepped hard off his right foot and scored a converted try.
Boshoff continued his fine kicking form with another critical penalty to take some pressure off of the home side. Griquas hooker Wilmat Arnoldi was then sin binned for a dangerous tackle but the home side didn’t capitalise on this. The half-time score read Blue Bulls 27-21 Griquas.
Libbok stunned the Loftus faithful with another staggering solo effort. Starting from his own 22, he stepped and outpaced three Griquas defenders after just 40 seconds into the second 40 for a converted, bonus point try. He completed his hat-trick a minute later with a well timed run onto a pop pass.
Griquas reserve forward Wandile Putuma scored a converted, bonus point try after a hard, low run towards the whitewash. Adriaan Coertzen benefitted from an impressive long pass to score another converted try and reduce the home side’s lead to just six points with ten minutes remaining.
But reserve Blue Bulls fly-half Tony Jantjies landed a 79th minute penalty to end the Griquas hopes of a comeback, with Coertzen’s converted try after the final hooter a consolation in a 44-42 win for the Blue Bulls.
The scorers:
For Blue Bulls:
Tries: Maxwane, Van der Westhuizen, Libbok 3
Cons: Boshoff 5
Pens: Boshoff 2, Jantjies
For Griquas:
Tries: Arendse 2, Meyer, Putuma, Coertzen 2
Cons: Swarts 3, Whitehead 3
Blue Bulls: 15 Manie Libbok, 14 Duncan Matthews, 13 Johnny Kotze, 12 JT Jackson, 11 Rabs Maxwane, 10 Marnitz Boshoff, 9 Ivan van Zyl, 8 Nic de Jager (c), 7 Jannes Kirsten, 6 Shaun Adendorff, 5 Ruben van Heerden, 4 Aston Fortuin, 3 Dayan van der Westhuizen, 2 Edgar Marutlulle, 1 Lizo Gqoboka
Replacements: 16 Johan Grobbelaar, 17 Matthys Basson, 18 Jano Venter, 19 Tim Agaba, 20 Andre Warner, 21 Tony Jantjies, 22 Franco Naude
Griquas: 15 Adriaan Coertzen (c), 14 Ederies Arendse, 13 Tertius Kruger, 12 Johnathan Francke, 11 Koch Marx, 10 Andre Swarts, 9 Christiaan Meyer, 8 Jonathan Janse van Rensburg, 7 Sias Koen, 6 Wendal Wehr, 5 Pieter Jansen van Vuren, 4 Floris Pelser, 3 Stephan Kotze, 2 Wilmar Arnoldi, 1 Liam Hendricks
Replacements: 16 Abraham Le Roux, 17 Nicolaas Oosthuizen, 18 Jonathan Adendorf, 19 De Wet Kruger, 20 Renier Botha, 21 George Whitehead, 22 Eric Zana
Referee: AJ Jacobs
Assistant referees: Ruhan Meiring, Jaco Kotze
TMO: Willie Vos
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