Madibaz will never give up
The FNB Madibaz were unable to match their second-round herorics - when they beat FNB Shimlas in Bloemfontein - but they are far from throwing in the towel after their Round Three away loss to FNB UJ.
The Madibaz showed great determination throughout the game in Johannesburg on Monday night. They played a strong defensive game - making 92 tackles and missing only 13.
The conditions on the night were far from perfect as the turf was very wet underfoot and both sides had high error-rates. UJ lost seven of their own line-outs, the Madibaz lost three only. Handling errors were also high mostly to blame on the slippery ball.
UJ set themselves up comfortably with three tries in the first half, whilst NMMU struggled to get possession. Territory-wise, UJ held a 70% advantage - compared to NMMU's 30% in the first half.
The Madibaz salvaged some pride with a much-needed try by flanker Ulrich Pretorius in the last minute of the first half. NMMU's clear focus was to gain territory in the second half and they opened the second half with a try from reliable skipper Jaco Swanepoel - who has now scored an incredible four times in three matches. (Not bad for a forward - is it?)
The Madibaz hunger and willpower did not fade throughout the game. They scored in the final moments of the first and second half. It just goes to show they never gave up trying against a side that happened to be better than them on the day.
The Men from Port Elizabeth will host defending champions, FNB UCT, at the Xerox NMMU Stadium in Round Four action next Monday. Kick-off is at 5pm and the match will be televised live on SuperSport One.
By Jeanré Muller
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