(PHOTO: The UP-Tuks 1 team with the Lucas Strachan Shield)

 

It will be “feet on the ground” for UP-Tuks 1 after their undefeated run in the first round of both the inter-provincial Super League and Blue Bulls’ Carlton Cup Competition.
 

UP-Tuks finished their first round fixtures on Saturday, 21 April with an impressive 62-44 away win against Centurion. It was UP-Tuks’ 7th consecutive win after the opening match against Naka Bulle in February.

For this they were rewarded with the coveted Lucas Strachan Shield.
 

“The war is not won till the last battle has been fought. And we’re only half way there. Having won the first round is great and very satisfactory, but we still have to remain humble and never lose sight of the ultimate prize: claiming the Carlton Cup and Super League Championship titles,” said UP-Tuks 1 Head Coach, Nico Luus.
 

“To finish unbeaten after seven matches is no mean feat. Of course I am proud of what we have achieved so far and in this regard would like to pay tribute to the indispensable contributions of my fellow coaches, support staff and of course, the players. It is thanks to a fantastic team effort that we find ourselves in the happy space we are now. Being in this circle of trust is a huge honour and privilege,” added Luus.
 

“Our very talented squad of players deserved the right to celebrate the win against Centurion as we were relentlessly tested on many fronts. The fact that we never panicked despite their tenacity and even managed to score three tries in the last seven minutes is true to a team that are just too committed and goal driven to fail. But, we cannot get lost in the past as we have a lot of strenuous home work to do before the second round kicks off with the difficult away fixture against East Rand United in Boksburg (on 12 May). It is here where Naka Bulle scraped through to win 38-32 and Centurion actually lost. As the first round winners and log leaders we will be a most sought after scalp to take,” remarked Luus.
 

Issues that will come under discussion in “very candid inter-actions” are defence and discipline that have been under siege in the last two matches when UP-Tuks conceded too many penalties and cards and leaked too many soft tries.
 

UP-Tuks conceded ten tries against Springs (5) and Centurion (5), a worrying statistic for the coaching staff. Against Springs UP-Tuks conceded 19 penalties (against 8). Three penalties were for card infringements: 1 red and 2 yellow. Against Centurion UP-Tuks fared better as far as the penalty count went, but still conceded more than the home team. At a stage in the first half the penalty count was 7-1 to Centurion. UP-Tuks again lost rhythm and momentum when one of their players was sin-binned.
 

“Imagine to what heights we will soar once we defend as well as we attack. On attack we are devastating as with 60 tries so far we are averaging almost nine per match. But we also conceded 20 tries, far too many for the high standards we set ourselves in all components of the game. We must never put ourselves in a position where one missed tackle cost us the title,” remarked Luus.
 

As far as discipline goes, Luus will not tick this box until his team averages nine or less penalties per match. In this regard here was a marked improvement from the match against Springs, “but we are still not where we want to be. We conceded 15 points through penalties that constitutes 35 percent of their total score of 44. A card infringement is just as disruptive and can easily lead to even the best team’s downfall.”
 

Luus and his coaching team will also have to take note of criticism that his team does not a have a Plan B if Plan A, fearless running rugby, fails to deliver optimally. It is alleged that UP-Tuks ‘kicking game’ is not on par and this makes them vulnerable.
 

The match against Centurion really rose to all expectations as it produced 80 minutes of scintillating rugby, highlighted by the numerous long distance tries scored by both teams.
 

UP-Tuks scored nine tries: their first a penalty try. Top try scorer was right wing, Dewald Naude who dotted down on three occasions. The other tries were scored by Pieter Griesel, Gerrit Engelbrecht, Lourens Pretorius, Damian van Wyk and Stephan Coetzee. Steven Moir added the rest of the points with seven conversions and a penalty goal.
 

In the two curtain raisers Tuks-Fezelas beat Centurion II 50-17, whilst Tuks-Pumas lost to Centurion III (19-29).

 

Text: Morris Gilbert