Cape Buccaneers Rugby Club

Hammies begin their defence of the National Club Championships on Saturday 18th September at Stellenbosch University. Matches on Saturday, Monday, Wednesday (semis) and the final on the public holiday, Friday 24th, at the Danie Craven Stadium.
Winners on Saturday go into the next round, losers into the Plate competition.
1st Round Draw:
Hamiltons                     v Noordelikke (KO 17:15 Danie Craven Stadium)
Pukke                                   v Middleburg
College Rovers                     v Bethlehem OB
Springs                                 v Mossel Bay Barbarians
Maties                                   v Kimberley Police
University of Johannesburg  v Tukkies
Roses United                        v Shimlas
Border champs                     v EP champs

We finish the season in 4th place on the log, with the National Club Championships in Stellenbosch, starting in 2 weeks time.
 
                  PLAYED    WON   DRAWN   LOST       P/F    P/A    Points     
Maties             17         14          1        2        721     275        75
Durb-Bell         18         11           3        4        536     374        62
False Bay         18         12          1         5       511     386        61
Hamiltons         18         11          1         6       488     398        59
UCT                17          7           4         6       417      369       44
Victorians        17           7           0        10      436      527       38
Villager            17          8           0         9       356      432       37
SKW                18          5           1        12      457      510       32
Helderberg        17          4           1        12       404     555       30
NNK                 17          2           0        15      205      706       11


Saturday, 4th September was our last match and we played at Tech-Gardens against arch rivals, Villagers.
Hamiltons pretty much dominated the whole game without putting the points you would have expected on the board. At times we played some lovely rugby in the first half but a combination of poor handling and forward passes, in crucial try scoring situations, let us down badly. We also conceded far too many silly penalties, which gave Villagers relief when they were under pressure. We did, however, score one very good try through Jandre du Plessis, with Jason de Villiers tacking on the other 2 points. At half-time 7 - 0 was all we had to show for some good rugby.
Whilst we scored more in the second half, in a way it was not as crisp a performance as the first half, with more handling errors, balls spilled in the tackle, and too much pick-up-and-go in the mid-field, when the ball should have been going wide. Alshaun Bock made some telling runs that reminded us of last season and we slowly built on our lead. When an acrobatic dive over the top of a ruck for our third try came, it meant that Villagers had to score three times to win with little more than ten minutes left to play.
They did pressurise our line in a bid to get a least a bonus point, but we were saved a few of times, once, for example, when Maurice Reid snaffled a loose ball on our line that would have been a certain try had he been a split second slower, and another when Vaughn Botha made a clearing kick from behind the scrum, on our line, that took play right back into the opposition "22".
There were some promising signs in this match that the side could still challenge in Stellenbosch. Jandre looks sharp, although he bounces of some of the bigger guys when macking a tackle. Elric is still Mr Reliable. Alshaun is looking good and Clinton Van Rensburg's return to the middle of the park adds a lot to the side, as he straightens up the line and can deliver line-breaking passes. The pack, in general, is playing well, but should allow the ball to bypass them a little more than they do. Our defence is quite sound and if we can cut down on our errors in basic handling and tighten up our discipline we can still be a side to be reckoned with. But without doing this we'll succumb to the likes of Pukke, Maties et al, in the Champs in Stellenbosch.
And the Villagers match? Well, we did concede a try in the final move of the match, but the final score was, Hamiltons 25 - Villagers 15.

Saturday 28th August we lost to Maties in Stellenbosch, 54-12.

Saturday 21st August we managed to play some of the worst rugby we've played all season. After a beautiful opening try, with the ball passing through many hands, before Elric Van Vuuren touched down. But I should have seen the portents when Elric could barely get the ball off the tee for the conversion. 5-0 became 5-3, became 5-6, became 5-13 when Helderberg scored their first try. Nothing was going right, nor would it, the whole game. Maurice Reid latched onto a loose ball to score and put us within 3 points, but 10-13 became 10-16 and 10-19 by half time.
In the second half we continued to play much below par, making lots of mistakes and generally not as much "on the ball" as Helderberg. The attitude seemed to be that it would all come right in the end. Instead of moving the ball wide, we kept bashing the ball up the middle until we dropped it. No need to panic. At least, not until Helderberg score another try in deteriorating weather and now we needed to score three times in the last ten minutes to win.
I'm afraid it was a case of too little too late. We did score two more tries, one when the forwards crashed over and one from Vaughn Botha, but when the final whistle caught up with us, it was after a Helderberg penalty missed, and it was a sigh of relief that we didn't lose one of our two bonus points.
Final score: Hammies 22 - 26 Helderberg.
 
Saturday 7th August we finally got to play NNK. We fielded a very different side from what might be considered our "best" side for various reasons; injury, suspension & resting players. However the team that did play was well up to the task against a very poor NNK outfit. As in our previous match we were well on top with the bonus point in the bag after 20 minutes. However, this time we played against a much weaker side and there was no chance of them coming back at us. The half-time score was 40 - 7 and we were cruising.
It took us a little while to get into our stride in the second half but once we did we consolidated the win with five more tries. NNK scored another try when we made two substitutions when on the back foot in our own "22", and they drove over before our defence was properly re-organised. Anton, before the end used all his bench so that everyone got a run. We were never under any pressure from a team with few attacking options and a very limited defence, but at least it showed that we can play good rugby however much we shuffle the team around. Pierre Cronje took over the kicking duties (Elric out with concussion from the previous week) and then Jano Van Zyl when he came on as a replacement. They only missed one conversion each out of eleven attempts and the points difference of 59 moves us ahead of Durb-Bell at the top of the log, for now.
Final score: Hamiltons 73 - 14 NNK.

Saturday 30th July we played second bottom in the log, Victorians. It was not an occasion that I particularly would like to experience again. Last year we had a lot of heart stopping moments, against strong teams in close matches, that we not only survived, but triumphed. To be in the reverse situation of being nearly beaten in games that we should have won easily doesn't come easy!
In this game we had our four try bonus point and the win, all sewn up in the first twenty minutes. How wrong can you be? Not that anyone can take the bonus point back, but the win? In attack we showed some of our most enterprising rugby of the season and at half time the lead was 32 - 22, having scored some wonderful tries and not converting many.
In the second half I expected that we would kick on and and tighten up the defence a little. It did not happen and with ten minutes to go, and our defence, leaking like the Titanic, let Vics in for their 5th or 6th try to take the lead 41 - 39.
Soon after we were awarded a penalty to take the lead, 5 yards out, in front of the posts, but we tapped the ball and ran it until we lost it! Fortunately, not long after we were awarded another penalty in front of the posts, and before we could repeat our previous crass decision making, we scored a try with the ref still playing advantage. Five ahead with only minutes to play. But now we were under the cosh with the Vics pounding our line. A Vics scrum under our posts on the five metre line and it looked as if the jig was up. However, the referee found some reason to penalise the Vics scrum. We kicked the penalty out and the final whistle sounded.
At times we played some magnificent rugby. Some of our tries were as good as you will ever see, but to allow the opposition to score as many tries as they did and nearly snatch the game is a sad indication of our defence and concentration. We know the league is beyond our grasp now, but we should still be striving to finish second and play the rugby that will give us a chance in the National Club Championship. We didn't do that today.
Final score: Hammies 46 - 41 Victorians.
 
Saturday 23rd July, at a windswept (as always) UCT ground we lost our chance of returning to the top of the log, and any chance we had of winning it. The opposition were a much weakened side compared to the one we played at home, (who were the best side we faced in the first half of the season) and we came with hopes of reversing our previous result, even though we too were still missing valuable players.
We couldn't manage to score in the first half, which was hardly suprising as we spent very little time in the opposition half. However we managed to still be in it because of missed opportunities by Ikeys, and a converted try by Pierre Cronje at the start of the second half gave us much more hope. However, poor first (and second) time tackling let us down badly and UCT scored a couple of good, but preventable, tries and with 10 minutes to go led 19 - 7. When we got a penalty close to their line we ran the ball and eventually crashed over near the corner to make the score 19 - 12, and set up a dramatic finish. Playing with more heart and determination at the end, good handling sent Alshaun Bock in close to the posts, and the scores were level after the successful conversion. We even had a chance to snatch the win at the end but the angle and distance of Jano Van Zyl's penalty attempt just defeated him.
It would have been an injustice to the Ikeys to lose this one but for us a shame to miss out on three of the points on offer.
Final score: UCT 19 - 19 Hammies
 
Saturday 17th July, we were back again at Tech-Gardens for our return fixture with False Bay who suprised us in the first match of the season. (Newly promoted beat National Club Champions!) As it happens, The Bay have more than shown their worth in the top division, and before this match were lying second on the log. For the game Hammies had captain Prinsloo back and Jano van Zyl started at full-back for the first time this season, assuming the goal kicking responsibilities, with Elric van Vuuren coming on from the bench.
We scored tries and looked good during stages of the first half and our half time lead of 22 - 16 should have been much more. We missed opportunities and indiscipline let us down leading to penalties and a try conceded, from a clever Bay kick to the wing,  following a penalty for our second yellow card.
In the second half our only reward for our "efforts" was a penalty. The Bay, like Durb-Bell the week before, were much more interested in winning this than we were. Hammies reminded me of England's soccer team against Algeria, strolling around the park with no sense of urgency. Or are they not fit? One of the strengths of the side last year was to outplay the opposition in the last fifteen minutes, but it's certainly not been the case this season.
With minutes to go False Bay were within six points and when awarded a penalty. Rather than kick into the corner to go for the seven they kicked at goal, and their fly half, who had been kicking outstandingly the whole match, missed. The brush with possible defeat did nothing to shake Hammies up and with the time ticking away False Bay scored in the corner and missed the conversion that would have given them the lead. The referee signalled two minutes to go. We gained possession and the forwards started to drive it up. But then, playing like the Sprinboks the  same morning, they kicked away possession from the base of the scrum and The Bay ran it to within inches of our line. One of the two try saving tacklers went high and was yellow carded, (our third of the match!) and The Bay had a final chance to grasp the victory that we had tried so hard to hand them. Fortunately for us, the kick was wide and the final blast on the whistle meant that we moved to second place on the log.
Final score: Hammies 25 - 24 False Bay

Saturday 10th July, after a 3 week break we went to Durbanville to try to regain top spot on the log, but it was not to be.
We started well enough, scoring a try out on the right after some good work by the forwards, right in the first 5 minutes. Sadly, as far as Hammies were concerned this was their only score of the match.
The conditions were atrocious, the pitch a mud patch from the rain that had started overnight and from previous matches played on it. There was also a strong wind, not quite up and down the pitch, maybe more corner-flag to corner-flag which made any kind of kicking into it to relieve pressure very difficult. Unfortunately Hammies didn't capitalise upon this and by half time, their only other scoring chance, squandered by a dropped pass, they were no further ahead than they had been 35 minutes previously. By now, apart from the odd guy out on the wing or recent substitutes, none of the players were distinguishable from each other so bad was the caking of mud on faces and kit.
After the change round Durb-Bell came out with clean shirts and a determination that far outweighed any that Hammies might have. We were never able to get out of our own territory in the second half except for a short spell approaching the final whistle. Durb-Bell scored two tries, and to rub it in, took away our one chance of a bonus point by converting both.
There's no doubt that they wanted to win this much more than we did, and this was a performance that we will want to forget along with a few other matches this season. We had people missing for various reasons, the conitions were bad (for both sides) but in the end we lost this because we failed to gain ascendancy in the first half and played with little heart, compared to Durb-Bell, in the second.
Final score: Durb-Bell 14 - 5 Hamiltons.

Saturday 19th June we were back at Tech-Gardens to play our home fixture with SK Walmers.
Certainly we were made to struggle at the outset. For half an hour we were hardly in their half, although we did kick one penalty (Elric van Vuuren) in reply to their early penalty. Mainly though, we were under enormous pressure and Jeffrey Williams was sent to the sin bin for a professional foul trying to keep them out. But keep them out we did and at the end of the half we played some good attacking rugby and nearly scored after some thrilling handling, both backs and forwards, and an exciting cross field run by Terry Jacobs. We were repulsed, but with the clock clicking down on the half we worked our way back into the SKW "22" and eventually forced our way over. Elric converted. The half really belonged to the opposition, but because of great defence, some rollicking runs by Tian Fick, and a spirited last few minutes, we turned 10 - 3 ahead.
In the second half there was only one side in the game. It took a while to get numerical domination, but once Vaughn Botha scored, after replacing Dustin Jinka, it was all over. Elric converted.
Further tries by Gareth Rowe and Jeffrey Williams sealed SKW's fate and gave us the bonus point. Elric converted one of them. One of them sadly resulted in the red carding of Jeffrey (2nd yellow card) and one of their players (red) after Jeffrey had been attacked after scoring and had retaliated.  As so often happens with SKW, their team officials got involved on the touchline and it was a little bit nasty. All very pointless, with the game to all intents and purposes, finished and klaar.
With many players not available this win was a testimony to depth of our playing strength. The bonus point helps to keep us in the hunt. Also the fact that we seem to be returning to better form, bodes well for the second half of the season.
Final score: Hamiltons 29 - 3 S K Walmers.
(By way of a footnote to this match,  Referee Joey Salmans in conversation with me after the game said that in terms of the laws of the game he had no choice but to yellow card Jeffrey Williams for retaliation. However, one must understand how hard it is not to react at all when attacked in a dead ball situation, in this case after a try had been scored, and one hopes that this will be taken into consideration should there be any resultant disciplinary hearing.)

Saturday 5th June. On a sunny, crisp autumn afternoon afternoon Hammies came to Helderberg looking for 5 points and they were to go home disappointed. In fact, they were a tad lucky to go home with anything at all. After having most of the territory and possession and being unable to do anything with it they found themselves a try down shortly before the halftime whistle went at the Millenium Stadium. (Wales 16 - 14 Boks) This gave me a better opportunity to watch Hammies, rather than one eye on them and one on the Boks from just inside the door of the Helderberg bar! Unfortunately I wasn't impressed. Helderberg kicked a couple of penalties and were leading at the interval 13 - 0.
Back to one eye on each game and just before the Bokke scrambled home 31 - 34 Hammies scored a try. (Back to the side of the pitch, and both eyes on Hammies!) Despite that they continued to struggle, but another try (only one was converted) saw us get to just one point behind. In the end we did get a penalty to win the game but it was a dour affair.
Final score: Helderberg 13 - 15 Hamiltons.
(Below..... Hammies scrumming on the Helderberg "22".)
 
Saturday 29th May. With the Super-14 final kicking of at 17:00 the home game against Durb-Bell started on a beautiful winter's afternoon at 3pm. It wasn't particularly warm for spectators because of the cold wind but the conditions were lovely for the players. Hammies started well, a worked move with new outside-half Lionel Cronje looping around his centre and Alshaun Bock being put in, in the corner. Or so we at first thought. A brilliant ankle tap brought him down just short of the line. However, we kept up the pressure and Jandre Du Plessis did score a try soon after, which Dinka converted. Then, as in previous weeks, we took our foot off the gas. A penalty to them and then a try saw us go behind, but a try from J G Giliomee put us ahead 12-8 at the interval.
Again in the scond half it looked as if we were going to take off. A great try by Jeffrey Williams, who scorched around his opposite number set us on the right path, but no, once again, after Jeffrey scored his second try, we let the opposition back into the game. Had Durb-Bell converted their last try a penalty could have won them the match, but they missed it and to score one more try in the dying minutes was a bridge too far for them, and Hammies hung on to win by a 4 point margin, 29 - 25.
Again we were like the curate's egg, good in parts. Cronje did bring a new dimension to the back play, but his positional kicking, particularly in the second half, left a lot to be desired. To our credit we did get the bonus point and if we can secure another 5 points next week will only lie 4 points behind log leaders Maties, with all to play for in the scond half of the season. (The Bay took us by suprise in the season's opener, and we should never have lost at Brookside. Imagine where we'd be now with another 8 points under our belt!)
 
Saturday 22nd May. Hammies needed to get their season back on track after the opportunity was denied them by NNK pulling out of their last fixture. We went to our old adversaries SK Walmers at the track to try to secure the points.
But first a word about the track. It is now fully surrounded by new, first class fencing. Since their backer pulled out I would have thought that this would be unaffordable, so who paid for it? Also they are within the FIFA stadium zone but are operating "business as usual". Why are Hamiltons not in the same position? I feel we've been badly done by, by the World Cup negotiations.
Anyway to get to the game, Hammies weren't at their best. Both sides scored a couple of tries in the first half but we were leading 14-12 by virtue of the conversions. However, SKW got a penaly before the interval to turn round 15-14 ahead. (On the half time whistle a SKW player ran 30 metres to punch Terry Jacobs for no apparent reason. In the ensuing fracas, typically including SKW spectators, the SKW player was merely yellow carded and amazingly, so was Terry.)
In the second half it took a while, but eventually we got into our stride and three more tries, two converted, saw us cruise into a 15-33 lead. You would have thought we'd have wrapped it up from here but we were sloppy in attack, and defence, conceding two tries in the last 10 minutes and we struggled to hang on at the end for a win, SKW getting 2 bonus points that they should never have come close to. We got our bonus point and the final score remained: SK Walmers 29 - 33 Hamiltons.
 
Saturday 1st May. What a difference a week makes. In our second home game, against Ikeys, we looked like a shadow of the team that so comprehensively beat Maties the week before. Strong at halfback with Groom and Rosslee and dangerous out wide with Brache and Sampson, UCT always looked threatening. However, despite looking listless and lack lustre when in possession, Hammies defended very well. In fact, the two UCT first half tries came from mistakes by Hammies when thay had the ball! Rosslee converted one and Brache kicked two mammoth penalties to send UCT to a 0-18 half time lead.
After halftime a try from us after several pick-ups and go on their line, plus a penalty from Rosslee put the score at 5-21. The wind was strongly behind as, as it had been for UCT in the first half, but we seemed unable to use it effectively. With around 15 minutes to go we spurned an easy 3 points that would have put us within two scores. Another ten minutes or so from end to end and eventually Terry Jacobs scored a good try after chasing and retrieving his own kick ahead. Unfortunately we still needed to score twice and it was too little, too late.
It is worth mentioning however, that UCT look a very competent side and will be strong contenders to win the league this season.
That then was the final score: Hamiltons 12 - 21 UCT.

Saturday 24th April was our first home game played at Gardens-Tech and we had the enviable task of taking on Maties.
We started well enough, pressing their line without being able to score. Then following a relieving kick up-field they were in our half for the first time in the match, won a penalty and were 0-3 up. Hammies went back at them but again were unable to score and when they returned to our half for only the second time, we again conceded a penalty and found ourselves trailing by six. Following this Hammies played some great rugby and superbly quick hands by the backs put Alshaun Bock over in the corner from where he trotted under the posts. Bock had another great chance but kicked when might have made the line. Nevertheless we scored again anyway soon after through Elric Van Vuuren, and these tries, both converted by Elric, and a couple of penalties from him, saw us lead 20-6. Unfortunately some sloppy play and lax tackling let Maties in for two tries at the end of the half and we turned round at 20 points all.
In the second half Hammies were a revelation showing all the skills of last year that have so far been absent this season. We scored three brilliant tries (Bock, Jeffrey Williams, Terry Jacobs) all converted by Elric, and at 41 points to 20, with the bonus point in the bag, looked unbeatable. Another sustained attack and a snap drop goal from Jason de Villiers meant that the Maties would have to score at least 4 times to win the match in the last 15 minutes. To their credit they came back strongly and never gave up. They managed a couple of unconverted tries, which, sadly, also gave them one bonus point, but they couldn't get close enough for the second. A fine performance from Hammies.
Final score: Hamiltons 44 - 30 Maties

Wednesday 21st April.
Victorians 12 - 32 Hamiltons.
We've won a match, let's hope we can push on from here.
Maties on Saturday at Tech-Gardens. This is a big one.

Saturday 17th April we played Villagers for the second time in 3 weeks. This time sadly it was in the league and the spoils went to our old rivals.
We certainly haven't got the spark that saw us carry all before us last season. With captain Clinton Van Rensburg sidelined by injury for a few weeks, Francois Prinsloo was back at number 8 to do the job. It was a stop-start game as far as Hammies were concerned. When Elric Van Vuuren brilliantly fielded a high kick under pressure, broke away from the Villager defence and interpasssed with the centres before they put Terry Jacobs over in the corner, we took the lead away from the opposition and it looked promising. Bit it was not to be. We fell asleep for most of the match and indifferent handling and bad option taking meant we were chasing the score most of the afternoon, especially after three missed tackles on Conrad Marais, the Villager left wing, saw him go over for a try that should never have been.
Jason de Villiers and Alshaun Bock each scored excellently worked team tries and Alshaun also scored by taking a quick tap penalty and running over unopposed. However, these flashes of good play were not enough to overcome the general malaise that seems to have slipped into the side. Loads of substitutions didn't do enough to win the game. It was nice to see Jano Van Zyl back in the fold but Terry Jacobs, the man he replaced might have felt aggrieved about being substituted. It certainly wasn't the wings who let the side down today.
Of course, Hammies as usual did keep going to the end and late on they reduced the lead to 4 points. Could they do it? The answer was no. Two red cards, one to either side, at the death was the nail in the coffin, as the resultant penalty, and 3 points, went to Villagers.
The final score Villagers 38 - 31 Hamiltons.
Two matches played so far in the league and all we have to show for it is 3 bonus points. At little different to last year!
With the next two games being Victorians away on Wednesday followed by Maties at Gardens-Tech on Saturday it may get worse before it gets better.


Saturday 10th April, Melrose 7's.
The final was a hotly contested affair with University of Johannesburg being ahead for most of the game.
Hammies finally caught up at 21 - 21, when Alshaun Bock scored his second try, but UoJ's speedster Lolo Waka scored his hat-trick try to put them ahead again at 26 - 21. An attempted drop goal by UoJ might have put them beyond reach at this stage, but it went wide and from then it was all Hammies.
Jandre Du Plessis's clever flip pass was taken by Gerhard Voss who scored under the posts, his second try of the match, the conversion putting us ahead for the first time in the game.
Hammies pressed home their advantage with Elric Van Vuuren going over for another converted try at the death.
Hamiltons therefore were the winners of The Ladies Cup for the first time in their history.
Final score Hamiltons 35 - 26 University of Johannesburg

Thursday 1st April and sadly we were the April Fools at False Bay.
In our first league game of the season we were never able to exert any control over the the game and put very little pressure on the home team.
We did score one try in the first half when a great pass from Clinton Van Rensburg put Rickus Smit over.
When we scored a penalty in the second half to tie the scores at 13 - 13, that's when you would have expected the SA Club Champions to surge ahead, but it was False Bay who went on to score a try. Another penalty and we were within 4 points, but we used up our allocation of last minute tries last season and that was how it remained.
Final score: False Bay 20 - 16 Hamiltons.

Saturday 27th March 2010
The Derby Day friendly was viewed differently by many of the spectators I talked to after the match.
My opinion was that is was not a great performance by Hammies, but that Villagers are a much better side than last year.

The first half ended level at 16 all. Three penalties each and a converted try by both sides. The Hammies try was a beaut, scored by Terry Jacobs from a pass by Alshaun Bock in a neat handling movement. But this was the only thing to write home about in an otherwise dour first half where Hammies spurned three very kickable penalties and got no reward from going for touch and the throw-in.
In the second half we got an early penalty and the scored remained 16-19 in our favour for a long time. We scored another try with less than 10 minutes to go, Jeffrey Williams crashing over, and although we missed the conversion, an 8 point lead at this stage virtually ensured the result.  We made a lot of substitutions in the second half, particularly the last 15 minutes. The most influential was probably Vaughn Botha, at scrum half, coming on for Pierre Cronje who had seem indecisive and slow to clear the ball in the first half.
We were sluggish most of the game and gave away too many penalties and made too many unforced errors, including losing too many of our own line-outs, and took too many wrong options.
Hard to pick any outstanding performances. Despite the line-outs, Mzwanele Zito got around the park well and made a good contribution. Jason de Villiers was solid and pretty much error free. Elric Van Vuuren was as usual, Mr Reliable, and kicked a penalty at the end to make the score 16 - 27, after only missing one kick at goal all afternoon.

Hammies were victorious in the 127th Melrose Sevens, the oldest Sevens tournament in the world.
Our squad in the final was: F Prinsloo, J Williams, G Voss, S Du Toit, J Rossoux, J Du Plessis, E Van Vuuren, J De Villiers, T Jacobs & A Bock.
Congratulations to all involved.
Our route to the final was:
Jed-Forest 0 - 33 Hamiltons
Melrose 14 - 17 Hamiltons
Army of Scotland 5 - 35 Hamiltons (Semi Final)
For scores and report on the final go to RESULTS & REPORTS below.

How would you rate your team's prospects in a game where they only had 30% possession, were in their own half for 70 % of the game and had to make 97 tackles against their opponent's meagre 29? Two chances, right? Wrong! When Hammies play they turn conventional wisdom on its head. Those were the statistics for the final of the SA Club Champs and yet Hamiltons still won. How did they do it? The answer is that they took every opportunity they had with ball in hand, took all the 3 pointers on offer, they defended like the Spartans at Thermopolae and converted all their tries.
The game started wuith PUKKE looking very sharp, but when we got the ball, a typical Hammies deft handling movement finished with Terry Jacobs turning the ball inside to Elric Van Vuuren who stepped inside the full-back to score. Our second try came when a well timed run, wide off the back of a ruck saw Ashley Down crash through the PUKKE Number 8 and captain and run over under the posts. A penalty between these two tries and two more in the last ten minutes when PUKKE were yellow-carded down to 14 men saw us reach the interval with 23 points. PUKKE though were not unrewarded, and with all their possession managed to score 3 tries in the half, but converting only one, were 17-23 down at the break.
Hammies went further ahead soon after the break when pressure on a PUKKE ruck forced an error. The ball popped out to a grateful Noel De Villiers who fed Liaam Scriven, and he cut inside for our third and final try of the match. Another penalty 2 minutes later only 44 minutes into the game, and we led 33-17. We only scored once more, another penalty. Tackle, tackle tackle. With a 19 point lead, surely we could hang on. Then it was 36-22. Then 36-29. Then, in the 74th minute another PUKKE try. A draw would mean ten minutes each way of extra time. We would surely not survive that. By now we were dead on our feet from all the defensive work, the heat, our fourth match in 7 days, not to mention playing at altitude, which suited PUKKE much more than us. The conversion went wide and we breathed, with what little breath we had left, a sigh of relief.
A penalty kick for touch gave PUKKE a line-out inside the Hammies "22" with two minutes to play. We scrambled the ball but the resulting PUKKE pressure meant that the clearance kick for touch took us further back towards our own goal line. PUKKE threw the ball in 5 yards out from the Hammies line but we stole the ball again, drove in and formed the ruck. The ball was there for Dustin Jinka to pick up with 15 seconds showing on the stadium clock. Patiently he waited. 5 seconds to go, 4, 3, 2, 1 and then the hooter sounded. Dustin seized the ball and hoofed it into the stands. The final whistle blew and the Hammies players went berserk. Deservedly so.
What a team of heroes. It's hard to single anyone out, there was no-one who didn't stand up to be counted. Maybe Clinton Van Rensburg deserves a mention for leading from the front with his strong running and decisive tackling throughout, and points machine Dustin, who didn't miss a kick.
Anton Moolman must be a very proud coach.
I'm a very happy supporter. It's a fitting end to a remarkable season. I'm saddened only by the fact that after watching every game of the season I couldn't make Pretoria and had to watch the last two matches on TV.
To all of you, Anton and his coaches and the players, from me, and all the supporters this year, I'm sure........THANK YOU!

v UCT away, Saturday 12th September 2009

Going into this game we needed 2 points to ensure winning the league. This could either be achieved from a win (4 points), a draw (2 points) or by picking up 2 bonus points by scoring 4 tries and losing by 7 or less. To win seemed the obvious target, and whilst UCT opened the scoring with a Rosslee penalty we were soon on our way and on the board when the forwards handled well and hooker Louis Loubser dummied his way over for the first try. Dustin Jinka duly converted. Another UCT penalty brought the deficit down to one point but another hard earned try, this time with Francois Prinsloo going over and Dustin converting, made it look as if we were cruising towards our goal of topping the log. If only it had been true. From here on in we really struggled, whether because of nerves or overconfidence, it's hard to say. For the next hour we played possibly some of our worst rugby of the year. UCT scored a try before the change round and at half time we only led by a single point, 13 - 14.
UCT must be given some credit as they never gave up and their full back caused havock in the Hammies defence whenever he ran at them. A Dinka penalty, but they pulled one back. 16 - 17. Another Dinka penalty but they pulled one back. 19 - 20. Into the last few minutes and all we had to do was hang on for the win. We tackled well and were now scrupulous about not giving away a penalty, but Rosslee dropped back into the pocked and struck a perfect field goal to put UCT in the lead.
Hammies quickly took the restart and attacked the UCT defence, moving the ball quickly from side to side, until, unbelievably, with the last play of the match, Alshaun Bock went over in the corner. Dustin's successful conversion was irrelevant, referee Joey Salmans blew the final whistle and Hammies were champions.
"It had to be like that, didn't it?" Clinton said to me after the match. Did it? So many of them have ended this way that I will be unable to report on any matches next year, by order of my doctor. My heart apparently can't take it.
Final score: UCT 22 - 27 Hamiltons.

v Helderberg, away, Friday 4th September 2009

This was a game that we needed to win, bonus points or not, so that a win in the final match would bring home the bacon, and we certainly started well with a bit of a re-jigged back-line. Vaughn Botha was the preferred starter at scrum-half with Clint at outside-half, Noel de Villiers at 12 and Hein Gordon at 13. The wings were still Terry Jacobs and Alshaun Bock, both of whom have been outstanding all season, and it was Terry who opened the scoring after only 2 minutes, with Elric van Vuuren (another outstanding contributor this season) converting.
Then a couple of minutes later we got a penalty 15 yards out in front of the posts. 0 - 10. Sorry, forget that scoreline we went for the line-out, lost the ball, went back to our own half, conceded a penalty,  3 - 7. OK let's start again. So we did, and after a scything break by Noel de Villiers, Hein was there to finish it off. Elric did the honours again. However that was the end of our scoring in the first half and a penalty to Helderberg left it at 6 - 14 at the break.
Rotating scrum halves as we usually do, Justin Dinka replaced Vaughn for the scond half, and Hammies came out determined to make the game safe. We regained our momentum when Alshaun  Bock chasing a kick ahead gathered to score. Not much later, Terry, coming into the line as a third centre, went through the gap to score his second, which Dustin converted.
Helderberg were beginning to defend well against our policy of short ball from Clinton, either inside or outside, and with 20 minutes to go he was replaced with Noel moving to 10 and Roussouw coming on at 12. It turned out to be quite a good move with ball going wider and Roussouw getting over for a try, duly converted by Dustin. At this stage we were totally dominating the match, our forwards playing particularly well, especially flanks Ashley Down & and Gerhard Voss, in attack and defence, Gerhard pulling off the tackle of the season in the last 10 minutes, which inspired the team to some inspired defence when our line was under attack. "They shall not score!"
Noel de Villiers completed the scoring, Dustin tacking on the extra 2 points.
Final score: Helderberg 6 - 40 Hamiltons.

v Victorians, away, Saturday 28th August 2009

It was a beautiful day for rugby, and in light of some of Victorians recent, less than fantastic performances, Hammies must have been looking forward to this game at Coetzenburg. How they felt about it at half time remains open to conjecture. Not that they were the worse side particularly, but they consistently failed to capitalise on good positions. In close-to-the-line positions "pick up and drive" seems to be the mantra in world rugby today. Hammies were no different. Several times we lost the ball doing just this when we had a backline of  3, or even 4 players against 2, and the line beckoning.
Victorians with a try and a penalty were the early leaders in the match but an opportunist try from his charge-down by scrum-half Vaughn Botha brought us back into the game and we turned round only one point adrift.
Whatever Anton and Clint said at half time seemed to work wonders as a Alshaun Bock went over in the corner, at the start of the second half, from the sort of handling that that could easily have brought us points earlier in the game. Justin Dinka came on for Vaughn and we scored another try, this time converted and a penalty, to take us into a 22-8 lead. Then Terry Jacobs and Elric van Vuuren were substituted, and I think by the end of the match the whole of the bench were on.
We were now in a strong position and should have pushed on from there, but we didn't. Whether it was over-confidence or too many changes to the side it's hard to say. We certainly made a lot of handling errors, gave away too many penalties and to large extent seemed to lose our shape. A careless pass and Vics intercepted. Alshaun Bock chasing back made two tackles , but was poorly supported in his defensive efforts and Vics had enough players backing up to take the 7-pointer. Another one of these and the scores would be level.
One would expect this try to be a wake-up call for Hammies, but far from it. Hein Gordon fielding a kick in his own 22, instead of kicking to clear the danger, ran into 3 or 4 men and got tackled with no support. From the resultant play in our 22, Vics eventually rolled a maul over the line for another try. Fortunately they missed the conversion and we remained ahead 22-20 with 5 minutes to go signalled by the referee.
We did spring back to life from the restart and stayed in their half. With less than two minutes to go we got a penalty 10 yards out in front of the poles. Anton from the touchline signalled to take the 3 points, but we duly took the scrum!! The result of course is the same story as the rest of the season..... Hein went over for a try (unconverted), making up for his mis-judgement at the other end, and giving Hammies the bonus point. It was followed by the final whistle.
Final score: Victorians 20 - 27 Hamiltons.

v Maties, home, Friday 21st August 2009

On a cold Friday evening, Hamiltons played what was expected to be their biggest challenge in the scond half of the season, and indeed it was, against a Maties side bristling with experience and talent, including many with Currie Cup and even Super-14 games under their belts. The visitors scored two first half tries that they failed to convert whilst Hammies could only manage a penalty. Halftime 3-10.
In the second half Maties scored a further try but Hammies came back with a good try of their own to keep us in contention. Hammies were playing the open expansive game that they always do despite very tricky underfoot conditions. However, so were the opposition. The forwards were probably fairly evenly matched, but the quality of the Maties inside backs were enough to swing the match their way.
Unfortunately they scored a fourth try for a bonus point and we failed to get any. No bonus point for them and one for us would probably have allowed us to lose again and still win the title. Now we shall have to win all our remaining three fixtures, all away, to finish champions.
Final score: Hamiltons 13 - 27 Maties.

v NNK, away, Saturday 15th August 2009

Hamiltons started this game playing the brand of rugby they've been playing all season with the ball moving swiftly through the hands, mobile forwards taking the ball up and then getting the ball back into play as swiftly as possible. For 20 minutes we were barely out of the Northern's 22, turning down chances to take penalty kicks at goal and kicking into the corners. When a flurry of activity suddenly took the play into our half and NNK were awarded a penalty. They didn't spurn the opportunity. Three-nil down  (although it's doubtful that the ball went between the posts) with not much more than 10 minutes of the first half remaining. Was this the turning point? Biggles, who'd been yelling "take the points" every time we'd got a penalty was biting his nails down to the quick. Undaunted, Hammies continued with their own style of rugby and finally got over the whitewash. When Clinton Van Rensburg got in for a second just before half time Biggles took his head out of his hands and gave that knowing smile that says "God's in his heaven and all's right with the world." Half time score 3-14 in our favour.

We started the second half as we had the first, but this time our thrilling rugby was rewarded much sooner and in less than 10 minutes we'd scored two tries for the bonus point and a 3-26 lead. Then for over 20 minutes we achieved very little and mistakes started creeping into our high risk game. Usually from trying to release the ball in contact or the tackle when it wasn't really on, where setting the ball up would have been the better option. Excusable maybe in this game at this stage, but potentially fatal against a team like Maties as I'm sure Anton is aware. Anyway, this period of play brought  us but one unconverted try to which Northern's replied with a 7-pointer of their own. This seemed to get us going again and we replied in the last 5 or so minutes with 2 more excellent tries. A consolation try at the end for NNK was followed by the final whistle.

We're playing great rugby at times and scoring some outstanding tries. I don't think anyone could be watching more attractive club rugby anywhere in the country.

Final score: NNK 15 - 43 Hamiltons

v Kraaifontein, home, Wednesday 5th August 2009

This rearranged fixture was played on a cold, miserable, wet night. Kraaifontein are relegation bound and looked it. Hammies played an understrength side (injuries? flu? resting players?) and amongst the missing was captain Clinton Van Rensburg who seems to have an aversion to playing against Kraaifontein.

The rugby wasn't great in the first half but certainly good enough. We secured the bonus point early and the halftime score was 29-0. The highlight so far for me was seeing Judgie in the bar walking around without crutches.

I knew I couldn't last the pace having started the evening early at the Olympic Sports Club celebration of 100 years in their building. Consequently I crept away with 25 minutes to go. The score at this stage was 53-0.

Well it looks as if once they got going Hammies didn't let up. It sounds like another five tries scored after I left as the final score was.............

Hamiltons 84 - 0  Kraaifontein

v Durbanville/Belville, away, Saturday 25th July 2009

I am now seriously beginning to believe that the Hamiltons playing and coaching staff are trying to kill off the older, more fragile supporters. They have induced near-heart attacks in at least 6 of the previous games this season and this one was no exception.

We started well enough, getting onto the board with a try against the run of play. In fact Durb-Bell probably had at least as much of the play, certainly terratorially, for the whole of the first half.   However we scored the points with another couple of tries, both converted, to turn around with a 19-3 lead. (Hooker Louis Loubser's try was a picture. He intercepted 10 metres out and suddenly realised there was no-one in front of him, and made the "dash" to the line.)

In the second half we couldn't get it right and slowly but surely they ate into our lead until they finally led 22-19. Two of their tries were gifts; one a charged down kick 5 metres from our line (nor really charged "down" as the ball stuck in their scrum half's stomach and he trotted over) and the other a pass from us to their player on our line and all he had to do was fall over and ground the ball. This is not to take anything away from Durb-Bell who tried all the match to play open, attractive rugby, and if you cast your minds back, we only just managed to beat them 11-10 at home in the first match of the season.

2 minutes from time and we still hadn't scored in the second half but......... yes, you've guessed it, the ending's the same as usual......... at the death we score a try, converted by Elric Van Vuuren, who had another top class game, get the bonus point and the win..................

Final score: Durb-Bell 19 - 26 Hammies 

 

v Villager, home, Saturday 18th July 2009.
After watching the 2nd's struggle to an undeserved draw with a late penalty it was hard not to think about how shambolic the fixture list for Western Province club rugby is. The whole of the season revolves around what suits Maties. This extended break in the middle of the season has done Hammies no good whatsoever, and you could see it from the 2nd team's lacklustre performance after a 3 week lay-off.
What I wondered was it going to do to the 1st XV, especially against a Villager side that has been recently beefed up with new players and was starting to get a few results.
Nothing to worry about, I thought, as Francois Prinsloo dashed over in the first minute and Elric Van Vuuren added the extra two points. We then went to sleep and it took a Villager try and penalty to pull us out of our state of lethargy. A good try by Clinton Van Rensburg with Elric again adding the conversion regained Hammies the lead...... but again we dozed off. Worse than that, we made untold errors, gave away far too many penalties and seemed unwilling to commit in 50/50 situations. The half time score after 2 more Villager penalties was 14 - 14.
The referee's whistle was prominent throughout the match with several yellow cards, but Hammies would be churlish to put the blame solely there for their situation. Villager took the lead 17-14 and a Hammies penalty restored the balance, but with threequarters of the game gone it was difficult to tell which team was top of the league and which one near the bottom!
We were in trouble so I decided to watch the rest from the bar; that seemed to have turned the tide before. Not that there's much encouragement to do so these days. It's looking very run down. Beer at normal pub prices and no glasses to drink it out of and shabby, plastic furniture, no doubt acquired from a recently closed down bordello, taking up so much space that it's difficult enough to walk through the bar, let alone stand and have drink there!
Anyway, enough of that. Did my move do the trick? Well, something did. Hammies were a different side in the last 20 minutes. After scoring another try, they did it again....... and again! The tries were from Francois Prinsloo again, Maurice Reid and Pieter Benade. Elric converted 2 of them.
Yes, another bonus point and another, on paper, convincing win against the old enemy.
Final Score: Hammies 36 - 17  Villager

v S K Walmers, home, Saturday 27th June 2009.
It's hard to give you a perspective on the first half as my eyes were split between Hammies and the second half of the British Lions/Springboks match as I watched one on TV and the other through the bar window.
Suffice it to say that it didn't look good and that by the time the Boks had seen off the Lions, SKW were seeing off Hammies. We turned around 12 - 23 to the bad, and this was further compounded by another SK 7-pointer so that we were 18 points in arrears.
20 minutes to go and needing to score at least 3 tries and convert two, with no response from the opposition, it didn't look good.
But we've been there before haven't we? See Maties & UCT below. The miracle men of club rugby did it again.
Not only did they get the required 19 points to lead 31 - 30, they rounded off the peformance with one more try for good luck.
Hammies win again with the bonus point,
Final Score: Hammies 38 - 30 S K Walmers

v Helderberg, home, Saturday 6th June 2009.
Hopefully, against low ranking Helderberg we weren't going to get the same nerve-racking rugby that we'd had in the two previous games.
However, nothing much happened for us early on in the match. Helderberg had the first opportunity to score but missed a difficult penalty. Then again a penalty attempt by Helderberg, this time very kickable, went badly awry.
Hammies, after this, seemed to sense the urgency of the situation and started to play a bit of rugby. The result was an Alshaun Bock try, Jinka missing the conversion. Alshaun went close again soon after  but the next real scoring opportunity was a penalty miss by Helderberg.
This was a match that we expected to win, and win well, but a quarter of the way through we were only 5 points to nil ahead.
However, we pressed on, and tried to play open free flowing rugby and were rewarded before the half hour by another Alshuan Bock try which was unconverted. 10-0. Soon after Elric van Vuuren scored another try that Jinka failed to convert and the score clicked up another five points.
At this stage Hammies were getting into their stride. Another couple of 5-pointers from Hein Gordon and JG Gilliomee, saw us turn round 25 to nil ahead with the bonus point already in the bag,.
What a diffence from the two previous games!
The second half started fairly well with a try from Maurice Reid, converted by Elric van Vuuren, who had taken over the the goal kicking from Dustin, who had been replaced at scrum half by Liam Slatem.
A couple of yellow cards, Hedley Wessels & a Helderberg player, didn't affect the game too much. But after Elric scored and converted a try, followed by a yellow card on one of the Helderberg centres, the visitors seemed to lose interest.
Clinton was off the field now taking a well deserved rest and Francois Pieterse scored a try converted by Elric, closely followed by a Willie Pieterse try also converted by Elric. The score was now 53-0 and it was festival rugby, running rugby. A chip here and a pass there nearly saw both Alshuan & Willie score before a pass behind his back from Elric saw Noel de Villiers get in for a try that Elric converted. In another free flowing move, man-of the-match Elric van Vuuren fed Willie for another try.
Another flurry of great rugby and a great break by Liam nearly put Willie in again. It was almost over, but a try at the death gave us a great winning scoreline of......
Hamiltons 70 Helderberg 0

 v UCT, home, Saturday 30th May 2009
I can't stand it any more. Watching Hammies every week is going to give me a heart attack. Another cliff-hanger, and this time we were only hanging on with one finger.
The match started with both sides looking evenly balanced. First half scoring was a penalty from Hammies (Justin Jinka), a try from Ikeys, another try from Ikeys, a try from Hammies (Louis Loubser) and another Jinka penalty. At half time it was therefore finely balanced at 11-10 in favour of the home side.
However, there was a strong wind and it looked as if maybe Hammies had not taken full advantage of it. It proved to be true as the wind enabled UCT to keep in our half and kick a couple of penalties before we hit back with an Alshaun Bock try. 16-16. A UCT penalty and a very good try which they converted to lead 16-26, put what looked like the final nail in the Hamiltons coffin. However, down but never out, this seems to be our attitude this season. With very little time left, and contained in our own half, we broke away and Terry Jacobs pirouetted over the line under the posts. No time for the kicking tee and Elric van Vuuren drop-kicked the conversion and rushed back to the centre for the kick-off.
Was there going to be another miracle as there was against Maties. Indeed there was, in no time at all we were back up there and Alshaun Bock went over for his second try. This time Elric took the tee, took his time and took the points. Unbelievable!
The whistle didn't go straightaway and there were a few hairy last dying seconds, but we never looked like surrendering our hard earned lead. The cherry on the top was that the winning try gave us a bonus point. UCT must have felt that they had been burgled but what a great bunch of burglars.
Hamiltons 30 UCT 26



v Maties, away Saturday 23rd May 2009
What a day!
This was truly one of the most exciting sporting events I've ever witnessed.
A determined, unbeaten Hammies turned up to see if they could do something that they'd not done for over 40 years, the last time being the last time they won the Grand Challenge, and that was to beat Maties.
They started off well enough matching them in all the early phases and two excellent kicks by Dustin Jinka gave them a 6 point lead. But Maties hit back with a converted try to edge in front. Hammies regained the lead 11-7 when quick thinking by Alshaun Bock who fed Niekkie Viljoen from a quick lineout, saw the lock charge in unopposed from 25 metres for an unconverted try.
About 10 - 15 minutes before the half ended Hammies seemed to lose some of their structure and made too many mistakes. Even the ever reliable Elric van Vuuren, after making a nice little break, threw the ball to no-one and Maties pounced on it, quickly recycled it and got down to the Hammies line. A couple of phases of pick-up and go and they were over for another try. This plus a penalty meant that the hosts led 17-11 at the interval.
Hammies started the second half as they'd finished the first and it was beginning to look ominous. Another Maties penalty and another Maties try took the score to 25-11 and to all intents and purposes the game was over. Not though for Anton Moolman who could see his way through the bad patch. He replaced Dustin, who, unlike his dominant game last week,  had spent a little too much effort on refereeing the breakdowns instead of quickly clearing the ball from the rucks,  with Liam Slatem. A few other new faces on the park including Ashley Down and Terry Jacobs and Hammies got back onto an even keel. Liam got the backs ticking again, captain Clinton van Rensburg was strong in the middle of the park and our pace on the outside looked threatening if we could get the ball out there.
The first visible sign of a possible miracle was a penalty by Karlo Aspeling. 25-14. Then there was an incident involving Tyrone Holmes and the Maties fullback. The Maties player had already been cautioned but both received the same fate, a red card. A bad injury also saw a long hold up in the play. Hammies battled on, fourteen against fourteen and a fine running move saw Hein Gordon sprint over for a try. The conversion was unsuccessful and the score now 25-19. Time, too quickly, ran away. The stadium clock showed 40 minutes, 41, 42... Hammies were penned in their own 22. Every time we broke out Maties kicked us back. Maties threatened the Hammies line several times and some, including your scribe, whenever Hammies regained the ball or won a penalty on our own line, were praying the we would just kick it upfield so that we at least wouldn't lose the bonus point. The clock ticked on, 43, 44, 45, 46... and still Hammies ran everything and still they were penned in their own 22. The clock read 47, 48....then some wonderful running and handling, Elric off-loading magnificently as he was tackled and there it was, Terry Jacobs running free and diving over under the poles. Karlo converted and the final whistle went.
Maties 25 Hamiltons Sea Point RFC 26!
The refereeing had been iffy but at least he played the extra time warranted by the injuries and hold-ups.
The cliche of victory being snatched from the jaws defeat was never more clearly illustrated than at the Danie Craven Stadium yesterday. But what was so fantastic for Hammies supporters was the way in which it was achieved. Skill yes, and fitness yes, but also amazing self-belief and courage, great leadership from Clint and shrewd management from Anton.
Anyone who travelled to Coetzenburg on Saturday will never forget it. In the words of the inimitable Max Boyce, "I was there!"
To prove it, here's my ticket. Was ever R20 better spent?

v NNK, home, Saturday 16th May 2009
I'm afraid the weather got the better of us and a mixture of torrential rain at times and a gale-force wind on a cold afternoon conspired against us. In a match where we were odds-on to win with a bonus point we only managed to come away with the 4 points for the win. Meanwhile at UCT, Ikeys benefited by postponing their game because of their waterlogged pitch.
As for the match itself? We started with the wind in our favour but could not capitalise in the bad conditions. Scrum half Dustin Jinka missed a penalty attempt and we were locked at 0-0 for quite some time. Finally Dustin got over the line for a try, but again couldn't get the resulting conversion between the poles.
So, we turned around to face the howling wind only 5 points up. NNK were resolute in the second half, but we were more so. Tyrone Holmes scored, this time Karlo Aspeling failed to convert. As the minutes trickled away, Tyrone scored again, giving us hopes of the bonus point. Karlo failed again, but hardly his fault. To give you an idea of the strength of the wind, just before the kick reached the line the wind blew it back, practically over Karlo's head!
Despite an impressive game by Dustin, and good solid games by Clinton Van Rensburg in the centre and Gerhard Voss at No. 8 we were unable to cross again for the bonus point.
Final score..................
Hamiltons 15 NNK 0

v SK Walmers, away, Saturday 9th May 2009
By half time we were 15-7 ahead with a Elric Van Vuuren penalty and 2 tries from Alshaun Bock (magnificent) and Tyrone Holmes, one of which Elric converted. The Walmers try showed how dangerous a missed tackle on a great player can be. After getting past his first man Rylands scooted through the rest of the Hammies side to keep them in touch at half time.
In the second half we put on the pressure. Alshuan scored another good try and Elric made a telling break and stepped the fullback to score under the poles. Hammies rang the changes as the game beacame safe, captain Clinton Van Rensburg and others given a well deserved rest. Two further tries from Francois Prinsloo and Maurice Reid completed the try scoring. There were two conversions in the 2nd half, one by Elric the other by Karlo Aspeling.
Walmers also got a try in the 2nd half and the final score was.....................
SKW 14 Hamiltons 39

v Villager, away, Friday 1st May 2009
Hammies opened the scoring with an Elric van Vuuren penalty, but Villager quickly hit back with an unconverted try when Marais, their left wing seized on a ball that we dropped, well inside their half, and ran around and through the whole Hammies team to score in the corner. They also got two penalties before half-time, but Elric also kicked a couple of penalties and converted one of the two beautifully constructed tries that we scored, one by Maurice Reid, and the other by Elric himself.
Half time:   11-18
In the second half our first time tackling was very poor giving Villager many opportunites that they failed to capitalise upon. If their final passes had reached Marais rather than gone directly into touch we could have been up against it. Eventually though we got it together. Firstly a try from Alshaun Bock who fielded a Villager kick, inside his own half, and ran around the opposition , much the same as Marais had done, and ended up scoring under the posts. Captain Clinton van Rensburg's persistence in the centre, where his strong running repeatedly took two or three tacklers out of the game, finally paid off when he went through the gap for our fourth try and bonus point. Karlo Aspeling jinked his way through the defence for a late try and with Elric converting two of these second half tries the final score was.............................
Villager 11 Hamiltons 37

v Victorians, at home, 25th April 2009.
Another 11-10 victory at home, can you believe it? (Previously beating Durb-Bell in the opening game of the season)
Six-Nil up at half time following a Liaan Scriven drop goal and a penalty from Eric van Vuuren we turned around one man short with scrummie, Vaughn Botha, being yellow-carded shortly before the interval. 
The pressure of 15 against 14 was just too much and Victorians took the lead early in the second half with a converted try. A penalty as well meant that they had a 4 point lead.
Whilst the rugby was not brilliant, maybe due largely to the conditions of a very wet pitch and rain throughout the game, Hammies kept pressing for the 5 points they needed to win.
When the chance came, Alshaun Bock did brilliantly, with no room to work with, to get over in the corner. The game was still far from won, but Hammies held on to the end for the points!

It's hard to decide what sort of a season Hammies are going to have this year.

We played the Derby game against Villagers with much gusto, at home on the 21st of March, and put 60 points on them.
When last did we do that?

Our first league game was at home to Durb-Bell on the 4th April and we scrambled home 11-10. Very worrying result.

On 18th April, our second league fixture against Kraaifontein, away, was a most peculiar game. We started off very poorly making loads of mistakes. Then we started getting into the hang of things and piling on the points. However, in the second half we went to sleep again and let the home side amass 29 points before we pulled ourself together and came back with another flurry of tries. The final score was 29-70 and so I suppose one can't be too harsh on the team, but you need to have been there!