Hamiltons 36 Helderberg 10
Game played at Hammies on Saturday 14th June 2008. Match report to follow.
Hamiltons 33 Durb/Bell 3
Hamiltons 91 NNK 0
Hamilton's are going from strength to strength. In this week's league fixture at Noordelikes Northlink Kollege in Parow on Saturday 31st May 2008 they excelled themselves.
After only 5 minutes Anton vd Westhuizen went over for the first try. After 20 minutes he could have had a hat trick. Unluckily he didn't! But after half an hour the team scored their fourth try for a bonus point.
With 5 minutes to half time NNK intercepted and were over in the corner..... nearly. A great tackle from Gerhard Voss saved the day, and Hammies came back at them and scored another try before the interval.
Half time score 35-0.
The second half was more of the same and what really reflected the Hammies spirit was that despite their dominance in attack, they still tackled like demons to keep the opposition out when they did have their chances.
The increasing scoreline gave us opportuntities to give the bench game time and they contributed lots of points when they did come on.
Everyone played well, as they did last week. The locks were particularly effective throughout the game, giving us a great platform. However it would be churlish not to mention the fantastic contribution made by Jano Van Zyl. He had a great game thoughout. He started out on the left wing, moved into the centre and played the second half at fullback. He finished the game with with 3 tries under his belt and also converted every try. 13 out of 13, 41 points in the match! This must be some sort of club record surely?
Final score, 91 - 0. What a game! What a team!
Hamiltons 43 Villagers 6
The first league fixture against Villagers this year went even better than the pre-season "Derby Day" friendly at Brookside. This time, at home, we never looked as if we would lose our early advantage.
It was one of those games where the whole team, including the substitutes that were brought on, played well from start to finish. By half time the game was to all intents and purposes over, unless Hamiltons really collapsed and maybe had three simultaneous red cards. That was never going to happen.
The Hammies forwards dominated up front and also looked very mobile with ball in hand. The backs moved the ball quickly along the line and played rugby that was not only effective but also delightful to watch. This was the sort of rugby that wins titles and consolidates our position behind Maties, who are certainly beatable, as we saw at Newlands and as UCT showed last week in their narrow defeat.
Another plus for the supporters was to see the bonus point come early in the game. They were well worth the 43-11 scoreline.
Roll on next week!
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Hamiltons 20 Stellenbosch 26
A sad day. The first loss. Playing the Curtain Raiser to the WP game at Newlands on Saturday 3rd May 2008, the Hamiltons backs gave a sterling display but were unfortunately let down by there forwards who for the first time looked second best on the field. Although two players were called up for WP duties, this was no excuse for there tired looking play. Stellenbosch scored 4 unconverted tries and 2 penalties thereby collecting a bonus point whilst Hammies managed two converted tries and two penalties thereby also scoring a bonus point .
Hamiltons 50 Tygerberg 12
The Hamiltons 1st XV concluded a convincing victory over Tygerberg by 50 points to 8 in a night game played at Hamiltons on Friday 25th April 2008. The 50 points included 8 tries. Tygerberg managed 4 penalties in reply. This is the third successive game for Hamiltons where they have not conceded a try. The win propels them to 2nd in the log 2 points behind Stellenbosch. Stellenbosch have played the same number of games and are also unbeaten but gained an extra 2 bonus points in their earlier games.
Hamiltons 30 UCT 18
Playing under lights at 9.00pm on a Friday night 18th April 2008 away against UCT , the Hammies 1st XV continued on there winning way with a calculated victory over an energetic Varsity side.
From the kick off Hammies showed there metal and were up by 3 points within seconds. The UCT students responded and were awarded one of many penalties in front of the poles to make it 3 all. The Hamiltons pack reacted to this and were rewarded with a converted try before the ref stepped in and awarded a further 2 penalties in front of the poles to UCT which they duly took making it 10-9 at the break.
Hammies went to sleep for a period after half time and although scoring a second unconverted try were at the referees mercy and the game was evenly poised with UCT retaining possesion and their backs launching striking runs which were only thwarted through excellent defence by the Hammies players. Very worryingly Hammies conceded a further 2 penalties for Varsity to level the score at 15-15. A further penalty pushed us ahead but UCT were for the 6th time awarded a penalty in front of the poles which they took levelling the score at 18-18.
At this stage Hammies coach Johan Lerm brought on his substitutes and with Robbie Tilsen coming on at hooker the impact was felt immediately and a spark was ignited amongst the forwards with Hammies camping in the UCT half for the last 15 minutes of the game. A converted try eased the tension amongst the supporters and then with 3 minutes to go a further converted try sealed the victory along with a bonus point for the 4th try !
Hamiltons 24 Victorians 6
On a blustery autumn Friday evening 11th April 2008 in front of a sizable crowd, there was an anticipation to this game, as much to observe any notable improvement in Hammies play from the previous week, as there was to reverse last seasons narrow loss to this same opposition.
Excitement however was not the order of the day as both sides sparred with each other with numerous barging forward runs, grubber kicks and up and unders which generated mixed results. Although both sides were penalised for ongoing infringements, it was only the resulting penalties vua the trusty boot of Jano van Zyl that saw Hammies convert steady pressure to points.
The half time score was 14-6 with Hammies having probably a more successful back line of the two , offering a rugged defense and greater handling skills. Vic's inexplicably seemed often at a loss to select the correct option,rarely threatening and belied there status as a running side.
The turn around saw the two packs continue as they left off, both seeking to dominate each other and with such aggressive competition it was no surprise to see Hammies captain Jaco Gouws sin binned.
With 20 minutes to go the Hammies substitutions injected some much needed life into the game with particular reference to an energised front row. A real forwards try converted and this followed by a penalty sealed the game for the host team 24-6.
Although 3 yellow cards were issued, the game although robust was played in good spirit. For Hammies both the 1st choice and substitute scrumhalves and centre Van As were key to the result. Scorers for Hammies were a try each to Paul Roux and Gerhard Voss, 1 conversion to Jaco Weideman with Jano van Zyl and Koos Eksteen sharing the penalties.
Hamiltons 20 Schotcheskloof Walmers 8
In the first league game of the season played at SK Walmers on Saturday 5th April 2008, the Hamiltons 1st XV dominated there opponents and scored a well deserved 20 - 8 victory.
Playing in slightly breezy conditions, the Hammies forwards set the tone for the game and had there counterparts on the back foot , maintaining possesion and camping in SK Walmers territory for extended periods with ex Springbok Johan Ackerman and ex Sharks player Jaco Gouws dominating. Two penalties to Hammies were missed but Hammies kept the pressure up and were rewarded when with the ball being whipped down the line, a kick ahead saw a chase to the ball being won by the speedy Hammies centre Pierre Cronje who dotted down. The try was converted and Hammies led 7-0.
At this stage SK Walmers fought a mini fight back and came close to scoring, however , tenacious tackling and good positional play thwarted there attempts. With half time threatening, Hammies, playing a structurally correct game drove the ball deep into the oppositions half. A scrum to Hammies insued and a lightening break round the blind by the scrumhalf saw our speedy wing Richard Lawson running around his opposite number to score underneath the poles.
The score remained 14-0 for some time before SK Walmers converted a penalty. Hammies then converted two more penalties with SK Walmers scoring an unconverted try with the final whistle sounding at 20-8.
The striking difference in previous Hammies peformances was the clinical and structural manner of the Hammies play. The much vaunted "Strong Man" pack of SK Walmers were never allowed into the game and the backs looked dangerous everytime they ran the ball. The scoreline suggests a close game, however Hammies could quite easily have ended up with a further 20 points!
The after match celebrations continued late into the night at Hammies pub, with the Chairman generously donating an open bar for the whole night !
Hamiltons 1st XV 17 Durb-Bell -1st XV 7
Hamiltons 1st Xv played a friendly against Durb Bell at Bellville on Wednesday 26th March. It was an experimental side from Hammies point of view, with 8 key players being rested . The Under 20 scrumhalf was given a run for he whole of the second half. In spite of this Hammies managed to emerge victorius with a 17 - 7 victory. A lot of injuries unfortunately occurred on the night with the worst reportedly being Ashley Downs who apparently has a broken arm !
HAMILTONS 34 VILLAGERS 26
In a game played in very windy conditions at Brookside, Hamiltons scored a decisive victory over Villagers. At half time the score was 19 -10 in Villagers favour but having played with the wind in the first half , Villagers now had to play against it in the second. Although the scoreline suggests a close game, there was never any doubt that Hamiltons would win and indeed the tries that Villagers scored were due to poor tackling by Hammies which on 3 occasions saw the Villagers run the full length of the field to score. With Hammies dominating up front thanks to their monster pack, they camped in the Villagers half of the field for most of the game. The Villagers backs were enterprising and ran the ball at every opportunity but could not sustain the relentless pressure of the Hamiltons forwards.
Although a good win, Hammies still have a lot to do in getting to grips with the new laws.
It was a clean sweep for Hamiltons with all sides from Under 20's through to First team all winning their matches.
In the Old Crocks, Paddy Greenacre (now 67) turned out for his 51st Derby against Villagers, although he was not the oldest on the field with Dennis Nick of Villagers still playing at 73 years old !
This match played on Saturday 1st March at Paarl to celebrate Paarls 130th year was a bit of a mismatch with Hammies cantering in with 14 tries to the oppositions 3.
It was a nice flowing game of rugby and allowed the backline players to show off their handling skills (and those obstinate forwards who believe they are backs) and to execute some great handwork and score some delightful tries .
FRIDAY 7th SEPTEMBER 2007
Hamiltons ended off the season on a high note on Friday, beating Collegians by 42 points to nil in a try feast at Hamiltons grounds. The powerful foward pack once again paved the wave for victory and Hammies with the surplus of ball available were able to unleash there backs at will for a highly entertaining flowing rugby game. Collegians came to the party and ran the ball at every opportunity which ensured a great end of the season.
Hammies came away with 5 points which puts them on the same number of points as Stellenbosch but with a better Goal difference so at this stage Hammies are top of the log. See www.wpclubrugby.co.za
However Stellenbosch have 2 games in hand and will just need 1 point to retain the championship trophy.
But in a farcical twist to club rugby, on Sunday the National Club championships began with Stellenbosch taking part , yet with still having 2 games to play to end the season and right at the start of the World Cup! Crazy !
FRIDAY 31st AUGUST 2007
Hamiltons made sure of finishing at least second in the league with a comprehensive drubbing of NNK played in rainy conditions at Hamiltons on Friday 31st August 2007.
The juggernaut Hammies pack once gain dominated the opposition in all phases . The loose trio were in particular god form and all three scored tries with Jaco gouws for the second week running scoring tow tries. Jaques Engelbrecht put on some powerful driving runs and also featured among the tries. With a surplus of good ball, the Hamiltons backs were able to spread the ball out wide and the wingers Willie Pieterse amd Valentine van Wyk always looked dangerous and were both amongst the tries.
In total Hammies scored 8 tries with 6 of these coming form the forwards.
Mathematically Hamiltons are still in with an outside chance of taking the league. However at the moment Stellenbosch have 67 points and Hamiltons 62. Hammies will need to win there last game against Collegians by at least 29 points and include 4 tries (which is not impossible as they beat them by 70 points in the first round) but the crunch is that Stellenbosch will need to lose there remaining two games and not gain any bonus points. But never say never, stranger things have happened !
The last game of the seaon will by played on Friday night 7th September 2007 against Collegians at Hamiltons.
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Saturday 25th August 2007
Hamiltons were in a rampant mood against the Ikeys at UCT grounds on Saturday outscoring there opponents by 7 tries to 4. The fields were muddy but no wind and blue skies prevailed. Apparently this is the first time in 2 and a half years that UCT have lost at home !
It was the Hamiltons powerhouse forwards pack which laid the foundation. They were on top in the set phases but it was their driving play which caught the eye. In this respect Ashley Downs excelled. The first try came off a planned move from a set scrum with the scrumhalf acting as a decoy running one way and Jaco Gouws (8th man) picking up to drive 20 meters before flipping a pass to Willie Pieterse9wing) to dot down. Jaco Gouws helped himself to 2 tries.
With 12 minutes to go the score was incredibly 38 - 3 but Varsity came back with 4 quick tries albeit that extra time of 13 minutes was inexplicably played !!
Man of the match was surely our own Buccaneer "The Pie Man" Huw Pryce-Jones who broke through the backline at will and caused numerous problems for the Ikeys backline.
The next league game is this Friday night at Hammies at 7pm against NNK.
Hammies scored a valuable extra point for scoring 4 tries and remain 2nd in the league with 2 games to play !
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SATURDAY 11TH AUGUST 2007
Hamiltons 1st XV scored a hard fought 13 - 6 victory over traditional rivals Villagers at Hamiltons on Saturday.This makes it a clean sweep of 3 victories against Villagers for the season !
The game was played in very muddy conditions which suited Hammies with there powerhouse pack. Ther was no score for the first 15 minutes with Hamiltons camping on the Villagers tryline and the forwards launching atatck after attack which were bravely defended by Villagers. Eventually however the pressure told and Hammies scored when the ball was whipped out to the wing. The kick was missed and Hammies were in front 5-0. Hammies missed a further 3 penalties and the score remained 5-0 at halftime.
In the second half Villagers showed more aggression and put Hammies under pressure which resulted in a penalty being converted. Hammies then replied with a strong storming drive which led to a try close to the poles.Unfortunately the conversion was again missed. Hammies then after pressurising Villagers were awarded a further penalty and the score remained 13-3 till a late Villager penalty ended the game with Hammies victorious at 13-6.
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