The Johannesburg Police (Bobbies) Rugby Club started the second round of the Pirates Grand Challenge (Pool 2) with a bang.
The second round fixtures started with games against their local rivals, Diggers Rugby Club, and with eight regular players not available, Bobbies had to really dig deep to to show their character.
Unfortunately, the second and third teams lost their matches 14–8 and 23–17 respectively, with the U/19s and U/21s claiming victory. The U/19s won by a single point (15–14) while the U/21s racked up 54 unanswered points.
The first team, missing a number of key players, defended well, and held off the Diggers attack with great tackling. After the first 10 minutes’ dominance by their opponents, Bobbies started taking control of the game, and walked away with a 38–11 victory.
“Even though the lack of game time really started showing toward the end of the game, the players never gave up and kept playing.
Management was really proud of the players, who showed that, even with some key players not playing, they are just as good,” said Jason du Toit, the club’s chairman.
The next fixtures in the round were played against Germiston Simmer, and with all the regulars returning, the coaches were left with some difficult decisions to make, come selection time. But, they decided to back the players who beat Diggers during the previous game, and were only forced to make one change, due to an injury. With Simmer unable to field all of the required teams, only the U/21s, Firsts and Seconds played on the day.
The U/21s had a slow start to their game, but, as soon as they got going, they recorded a 43–3 win, with the second team winning with 51–5. The first team came out, and scored with ease, recording 33 points in the first half. When the second half kicked off, they picked up where they left off and scored their first points within the first two minutes, and claimed an 84–11 victory.
“Our focus will now be on our next two tough fixtures against Union Rugby Club and Alberton Rugby Club, as these games will finalise the log for the season,” Jason said.
Their next games will be against Union (13 July), Alberton (21 July) and Soweto (28 July) and will all be played at home. “We call on everyone to come out and support us, as it will mean a lot to the players,” he said.
The club is still open to any new players that want to play rugby. Junior rugby (U/8 to U/18) has also started and is going well. The club now also boasts a netball section, and is inviting all those who are interested to join them.
For more information, contact Jason on 082 850 1344 or send an email to Jason.4d@telkomsa.net. Alternatively, contact Albert on 072 462 2400.
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