Man of the Match: Brendon Mandivenga. Photo: Rugby365
The 50th Craven Week started off with a bang when the lively Zimbabwe side beat SA’s Griquas 35-17 at the old Peter Mokaba stadium in Polokwane.
The day started with a gentle mattress of mist lying over the stadium which had cleared to blue sky by the end of the match.
Lihan Pretorius blew the first whistle, Wessel Matthys kicked the first kick-off, Brendon Mutukwa kicked the first penalty goal, Jabulani Mutukwa scored the first try and Mutukwa kicked the first conversion of the first match in the Golden Jubilee of Craven Week.
From a third-minute penalty by elegant fullback Brendon Mutukwa of Peterhouse, Zimbabwe led a much less cohesive Griqua side who struggled through out the match for possession.
They lost six of their 10 line-outs, including one five from the Zimbabwean line. They lost a tighthead and were beaten hollow for the loose ball.
In fact Zimbabwe would have won by even more had their handling not been poor. In fact they would have scored another try right at the end when Brandon Boshi went over but the pass was forward.
The closes Griquas came to their northern opposition was 6-3 when penalty goal got them to 6-3 after 21 minutes. Dimitrio Tieties goaled the penalty. The strong Noord-Kaap centre was the star of his side with his line breaks and kicking. He teamed up well with strong Luke Mason in the centre. – Rugby365
