Saffas Abroad: Du Preez, Wiese continue to put hands up

Published on

Daniel du Preez and Jasper Wiese both turned in influential performances for their respective sides in round 17 of the English Premiership this past weekend.

Du Preez, playing at No 8 for the Sale Sharks, scored the winning try as his side came from behind to beat the Worcester Warriors 35-32 in a thrilling encounter on Saturday.


Along with his try, Du Preez made 16 carries for 44 metres, four passes, seven tackles, beat three defenders, offloaded twice and picked up a try assist.

That the Worcester Warriors had stayed in the game was down to former Springbok scrumhalf Francois Hougaard, who scored a hat-trick of tries in a reminder of his ability when in form.

Also on the scoresheet for the Sale Sharks was loosehead prop Coenie Oosthuizen, while second-row pair Cobus Wiese and JP du Preez both enjoyed solid outings.

Continuing the theme of outstanding No 8s, Jasper Wiese capped a good week by continuing his good form despite his Leicester Tigers side losing the derby 23-18 to the Northampton Saints.

In total, Wiese made 14 carries for 64m, three passes, 11 tackles, winning one turnover, beating seven defenders and making two clean breaks. This was in the same week it was reported that he would be involved in the Springbok alignment camps for the upcoming British & Irish Lions series.

Meanwhile, Ruan Ackermann played all 80 minutes as Gloucester came from a 14-point deficit to beat the Newcastle Falcons 35-24. Ackermann made 13 carries and 11 tackles and also picked up a try assist. Jacques Vermeulen got on the scoresheet as defending champions Exeter Chiefs claimed a 20-12 win over the log-leading Bristol Bears. Exeter now trail Bristol by eight points on the log.

At the other end of the spectrum, it was not a good weekend for Andre Esterhuizen, who was red-carded in Harlequins’ narrow 25-21 win over London Irish. However, Tyrone Green and Wilco Louw had good games. It was the Bok tighthead who was especially impressive, dominating the scrum battle while making eight carries and completing all 11 of his tackles.

Photo:  Tony Marshall/Getty Images

Post by

Dylan Jack