Wanderers into final after Unam thriller 

FNB Wanderers are through to the JSB Gold Cup final after beating FNB Unam 34-31 in a cliff-hanger at the Unam Stadium on Saturday. 

With FNB Grootfontein already having qualified for the final, the race for the second spot was a straight shoot-out between Wanderers and Unam and they did not disappoint as they produced a thriller that went down to the wire. 

In a great tussle between two evenly-matched teams, Wanderers outscored Unam by four tries to three, but they were regularly penalised for unneccessary mistakes and Unam flyhalf Delron Brandt kept them in the game with his accurate boot. 

Unam struck first when hooker Marcell Klein barged over from a maul and when Brandt added a penalty shortly after they went 8-0 ahead. 

Wanderers, however, opened their account against the run of play when substitute back Tjareekuje Tjipute intercepted the ball close to his tryline and ran the length of the field to touch down. 

Wanderers had both prop Hans Ngoshi and flanker Sheron Rossouw yellow carded for infringements, with Brandt adding the resulting penalty to put Unam 11-7 ahead, but despite being two men down, Wanderers went 14-11 ahead when fullback Nandi Karuuombe rounded off a backline attack, with  Burger converting from the touchline.

Another converted try by centre Johan Deysel put them 21-11 ahead, but Brandt reduced the deficit to 21-14 with a penalty just before the break. 

Unam drew level at 21-21 when scrumhalf Ceejay Coetzee scored a converted try early in the second half, but Wanderers eighthman Edward Drotsky burst clear from a scrum to go over with Burger adding the extras, to put them 28-21 ahead. 

Brandt and Burger traded penalties, but when Unam replacement forward Newton Makaka crashed over for a converted try, they were once again level at 31-31.

Burger, however, had the final say, putting over a long-range penalty to seal their victory and book their place in the final. 

“I am quite stoked to get the win, but all credit to Unam,” Burger said after the game. 

“They really brought it to us today, they brought a lot of heat on attack, and they really put us under pressure on defence as well. But I’m just very glad we stuck it out and got the win,” he added saying that their forwards made a decisive contribution in the second half. 

“We got our forwards back in the game in the second half. We struggled with our first phases, especially in the scrums and lineouts, and the backs made some unforced errors in the first half which we have to get right on Monday, but in the end it was a team effort,” he said. 

Unam captain Rowan Jansen said it was a great game. 

“What a game we gave to the crowd, it was tight the whole way through. We trailed the whole game, but I have to give credit to Wannies, they made the right decisions at the right time,” he said. 

“We couldn’t pull it through in the end, but I just want to give credit to all my boys, who worked hard the whole time. For 80 minutes, the fight was there, but we couldn’t pull it through unfortunately,” he added. 

That win put Wanderers second on the log on 23 points and they will now meet log leaders Grootfontein (25 points) in next Saturday’s final. 

FNB Kudus, meanwhile, finished third on 19 points after beating FNB Rehoboth 59-21.

Kudus scored nine tries, with Dolando Vries scoring a hattrick, Aston Mukwiilongo a brace, and Lloyd Jacobs, Alexander Jansen Cliffy Cowley and Nando Dentlinger one try each. 

Michael Koopman added four conversions and Aurelio Plato three. 

For Rehoboth Keynnen Basson scored two tries and Jason Farmer one, while Miquel Busch converted all three. 

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