THE Xerox Golden Lions scored 14 tries as they mauled the Windhoek Draught Welwitschias 84-0 (halftime 24-0) in the SuperSport Rugby Challenge at the Hage Geingob Stadium in Windhoek on Saturday.
The Lions’ bonus-point victory lifts them to within one point of the North Section log leaders, the Vodacom Blue Bulls, but with a game in hand and increased their points difference to a massive 202.
The home side were not helped by the fact that they suffered a yellow card as early as the eighth minute when flyhalf Dirk von Weidts was sent to the sin-bin.
It took the visitors just four minutes after that to open their account when inside centre Gerdus van der Walt rounded off a good team try, converted by flyhalf Siya Masuku.
The score could have been closer the 100-mark had Masuku not missed six of his attempts at goal. But the Lions extended their lead to 14 points, with a converted try through Number 8, Jano Venter before Von Weidts returned to the field.
Worse was to follow for the Welwitchias as they were handed their second yellow card of the half, with prop Andries Rossouw being asked to spend 10 minutes on the sideline after 26 minutes.
The resultant penalty, which was driven into the corner, produced the third try of the afternoon as flanker Hacjivah Dayimini barged over in the corner for the first of his two tries.
The visitors rounded off the first half when they registered their bonus-point try through lock Arther de Wee, who forced his way over in the left-hand corner.
Masuku was unable to convert either of the tries as the Lions entered the changeroom 24 points to the good.
The second half was all one-way traffic as the visitors from Johannesburg ran in 10 tries with left-wing Gerhardus Labuschagne registering a hat-trick of five-pointers.
Labuschagne showed his pace in the first 10 minutes after the restart, running in two tries in the space of six minutes, one of which was converted by Masuku to give the Lions a 36-point cushion after 50 minutes.
Despite a raft of personnel changes from the hosts, the Lions scored again when Dayimini waltzed through the defence to score his second try of the day.
Flanker James Venter then got in on the action scoring two consecutive tries within the space of five minutes as the Lions crossed the 50-point mark midway through the second half.
De Wee and Labuschagne both scored again before the 70-minute mark and then the visitors ran riot in the final 10 minutes with the home side having no clue on how to stop the white and red juggernaut.
Adriaan Bester, Selom Gavor and Morne van der Berg all scored tries as the Lions rounded off an excellent afternoon in the Namibian capital, and heaping more misery on the Welwitchias, who have now lost six games out of seven and remain rooted to the bottom of the North Section log.
The Lions face off against the Hino Valke next Friday while the Welwitchias face another tough encounter when they host the Steval Pumas in Windhoek next Saturday. – supersport.com
Scorers
Windhoek Draft Welwitchias – none
Xerox Golden Lions – Tries: Gerhardus Labuschagne (3), Hacjivah Dayimani (2), Arther De Wee (2), James Venter (2), Dirk von Weidts, Jano Venter, Adriaan Bester, Selom Gavor, Morne van der Berg; Conversions: Masuku (7).
