Still work to be done in Bloem
The inaugural FNB Varsity Cup Young Guns match between the Shimla Youngsters and their UCT counterparts saw the Baby Kovsies triumph by 27-20.
As one would expect, Shimlas Under-20 coach Wessel du Plessis was very happy with his team's performance, and he said: "We were tied at 12-all by half-time and were behind 17-20 at one stage in the second half, so we did well to fight back."
But the first match of the youngsters' Varsity Young Guns campaign was not without problems and Du Plessis knows what needs to be addressed before they face up to UP-Tuks in Pretoria on March 5.
"We scored four tries, three of which were not converted. That is nine points we could have had... and they were not difficult kicks. We did not use our options at goal effectively," he pointed out.
"We also made simple mistakes - the breakdown points were not good and our ball possession was quite bad at times," he added.
With no serious injuries - except the usual bumps and bruises one would expect from an 80-minute rugby match - Du Plessis might make just one change to his side... in the front row.
"Rudolph Botha will likely be included in our squad from now. He won't be a definite starter from the get-go, but he should feature on the bench," Du Plessis told varsitycup.co.za.
Despite matriculating from Grey College in Bloemfontein last year only, tighthead prop Botha has already played for the Free State Under-19 team (in the 'Junior' Currie Cup); a sign of his pedigree despite being so young.
By Stefan Lotter
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