DHL STORMERS FACED FIRST DEFEAT AGAINST HARLEQUINS IN LONDON
The DHL Stormers, who rested several first-choice players, suffered their first loss in all competitions this season as Harlequins ran wild on attack for the majority of the game.
After the Vodacom Bulls and Hollywoodbets Sharks lost to English opponents on Saturday, it was the third South African team to lose in the Investec Champions Cup this weekend. With their lone triumph of the weekend against Lyon in Johannesburg, the Lions raised the SA flag.
The Toyota Cheetahs and Ulster's EPCR Challenge Cup game in the Netherlands has been rescheduled for a later date. Following an inspection before kickoff, which was set for 15:00 (SA time), match day referee Kevin Bralley declared the pitch unusable. To discuss the next course of action, EPCR will call a meeting of its Board Crisis Management Group.
With five tries in the first half and four more in the second, the hosts successfully turned their opportunities into points and won the match.
The DHL Stormers, on the other hand, made a concerted effort to get past the defence, but aside from two attempts in the second half, which allowed them to reach double figures, their efforts were thwarted.
The Harlequins took advantage of most of their try-scoring opportunities in the first stanza, which saw them cross the tryline five times in 22 minutes and score 33 points without a response from the DHL Stormers. The visitors were left scoreless in the first half as a result of their outstanding defensive performance, which allowed them to counter every opportunity the Capetonians created to cross the tryline.
They continued to build on this momentum in the second half, scoring three straight tries, including Nick David's hat-trick, until the DHL Stormers eventually broke through the defence to cut their deficit with consecutive unconverted tries from Imad Khan and Dylan Maart.
Harlequins' ninth try on the stroke of full-time, however, dashed their dreams of a strong end to the game. They defeated the United Rugby Championship log leaders 61-10 and suffered their first loss in the Investec Champions Cup this season.
Next weekend is the competition's final pool round. On January 16, the Vodacom Bulls travel to France to play Section Paloise at 22:00. On January 17, the Hollywoodbets Sharks host ASM Clermont Auvergne in Durban at 15:00, while the DHL Stormers play the Leicester Tigers in Cape Town at 17:15.
In the fourth round of the EPCR Challenge Cup, Racing-92 will host the Toyota Cheetahs on January 18 at 19:30, while the Lions will travel to France to play Perpignan on January 17 at 19:30.