The Leopards thrashed the Griffons 70-25 in their fifth-round Currie Cup Premier Division qualifier, while SWD and Boland also registered wins.
The men from Potchefstroom made their intentions clear with two early tries from flank Philip de Wet and lock Francois Robertse sandwiched between a Pieter-Steyn de Wet penalty for the Griffons. The Leopards, though, continued their free-scoring run with two more scores from fullback Hoffman Maritz and wing Luther Obi, but conceded a five-pointer when Griffons wing Norman Nelson broke their defence before the break.
Having secured the four-try bonus point in the first half, the Leopards cut loose in the second. They bamboozled the Griffons defence, running in six more touchdowns, with former Springbok flyhalf André Pretorius converting them all to uphold his 100% kicking record.
The Griffons, though, fought valiantly and scored thrice to secure a losing bonus point. The Leopards now move within a point of the log-leading Griquas with only two rounds remaining.
In East London, Border fell agonisingly short of a first win in four attempts, losing 33-31 to South Western Districts. Promising fullback Masixole Banda accounted for 21 of Border’s points with a try, two conversions and four penalties, but it wasn’t enough as SWD outscored them five tries to three.
Flyhalf Morné Hugo’s 15-point haul (three conversions, two penalties and a drop goal) propelled Boland to a rare away win, when they beat the Valke 35-20 in Kempton Park. The victory moves Boland up to fourth on the log, while the Valke slip from third to fifth.
Leopards (70) – Tries: Philip de Wet, Luther Obi (2), Sylvian Mahuza (2), Hoffman Maritz (2), John-Roy Jenkinson, Francois Robertse, Dillion Smit. Conversions: André Pretorius (10).
Griffons (25) – Tries: Armandt Koster, Norman Nelson (2), Nicky Steyn. Conversion: Pieter-Steyn de Wet. Penalty: De Wet.
Border (31) – Tries: Lindani Ndlela, Lundi Ralarala, Masixole Banda. Conversions: Banda (2). Penalties: Banda (4).
SWB (33) – Tries: Brian Skosana, Dwayne Kelly, Hentzwill Pedro, Kurt Haupt, Shaun Raubenheimer. Conversions: Elric van Vuuren (4).
Valke (20) – Tries: Coert Cronjé, Juan Kotze. Conversions: Kotze (2). Penalties: Kotze (2).
Boland (35) – Tries: Ryno Coetzee (2), Nathaniel Manuel, Duwayne Swart. Conversions: Morné Hugo (3). Penalties: Hugo (2). Drop Goal: Hugo.
Photo: Lee Warren/Gallo Images
