The South African senior women’s fifteens rugby team, the Springbok Women, hosted Kenya Lionesses in a light drizzle at the University of the Western Cape, Cape Town, on Saturday afternoon, 16 September 2023.
South Africa’s Interim Head Coach Louis Koen was looking to use the warm-up for the WXV Tournament to settle the established players in a squad.
Home-side legend Veroeshka Grain opening the scoring with a scintillating unconverted try in the fourth minute of play, and Roseline Botes added the next points after crossing in the maul to score a second try shortly thereafter, converted by Libbie Janse van Rensburg for a 12-0 lead at the 10-minute mark.
Following a period of sustained pressure by the Bok Women, Yonela Ngxingolo added points in the 15th minute, extending the lead of the match hosts to 19 points.
Home-side legend Veroeshka Grain opened the scoring with a scintillating unconverted try in the fourth minute of play, and Roseline Botes added the next points after crossing in the maul to score a second try shortly thereafter, converted by Libbie Janse van Rensburg for a 12-0 lead at the 10-minute mark.
Diana Kemunto drew first blood for the Kenya Lionesses following up a kick and beautifully intercepting a pass in the nineteenth minute, duly converted to draw South Africa’s lead back to 12 points.
After sustaining an accidental head injury, Lusanda Dumke was taken off the field as a precaution. This allowed Sinelitha Noxeke to come off the bench, earning her debut cap – a significant achievement celebrated by her mother, a former Springbok and current team management member.
Nompumelelo Mathe earned a yellow card in the 25th minute for a high tackle, and her absence signalled a passage of stern attack from the Lionesses. With Mathe still off the field, Kenya’s Stella Wafula crossed the line to finish off a great passage of running rugby by the visitors for an opening touch-down by the Lionesses in the 31st minute, an unconverted try which further reduced the home side’s lead to just seven points.
With Mathe back on the field, the home team was much more composed, and soon the pressure at the visitors’ try line was converted with the South African maul crossed the line for a second time at the hooter, and a second touch-down by Botes to restore a 12-point buffer for the Bok Women, with the score 24-12 in favour of the home team.
Kenya kicked off to start the second half, and the coach’s half-time efforts were heeded when Byrhandrè Dolf sliced through the Lionesses backline to score her first international try and the first points of the second half to take South Africa to a 29-12 early second-half lead.
Five minutes later, amidst intense Bok pressure and a numerical advantage, Grain scored her second try from open play.
Another four minutes later, no. 5 and former Proteas Netball player Danelle Lochner stretched a long arm to score South Africa’s fifth try of the match, her second in national colours, excellently converted by Janse van Rensburg for a 36-12 lead.
The Bok rolling maul brought more points for the home side in the 11th minute of the second half when the forwards carried the ball over the line for Botes to dot down her third try of the match, for a tally of nine tries in 12 matches.
The match hosts spent most of the remaining minutes camping in Kenya’s half, with the Lionesses bravely staunching wave after wave of Bok attack. With fifteen minutes remaining on the clock, debutante Unathi Mali slotted perfectly into the backline formation to cross the line for her first points in international colours, bringing the Bok Women to a 48-12 lead after a brilliant Janse van Rensburg conversion.
Adding to the visitors’ woes, instrumental Lioness no. 5 Faith Livoi was handed a yellow card suspension following repeated maul infringements, and the resulting pressure on Kenya eventually saw Libbie Janse van Rensburg expertly touch down from open play to take the South Africa tally over 50 points, her unsuccessful conversion attempt leaving the scores at 53-12 with 15 minutes to play.
The pressure from the home side refused to die down against a brave but tiring Lioness defence, and Nompumelelo Mathe’s pick and go put her on the score sheet as she took the Bok Women to a 60-12 lead with 11 minutes to go.
Five minutes later, too many numbers on the outside and the continual Bok pressure saw Grain cross for her second try from open play. Sharks Women’s Mary Zulu stepped up and slotted the conversion to take the South Africans to a 55-point lead, with three minutes to play.
But the Bok Women were not finished, and further sustained by the home side saw them camping on the visitor’s try line until a great open play formation saw Grain over the line for her hat-trick in the match, and a 72-12 advantage.
The half’s many stoppages saw play go well into extra time, and there was enough time for one more home side triumph when Nompumelelo Mathe dove over the try line to dot down for the try of the fixture for the South Africans, for a final score of 77-12 in favour of the Bok Women.
The match featured many notable aspects, but none will be more treasured than the team’s vice-captain Nolusindiso Booi’s coming off the bench to match the most appearances ever by a Springbok women’s player.
The Springbok Women lineup v Kenya Lionesses in Cape Town:
Byrhandrè Dolf
Veroeshka Grain
Jakkie Cilliers
12 Piwokuhle Nyanda
Unathi Mali
Libbie Janse van Rensburg
Rumandi Potgieter
Lusanda Dumke
Catha Jacobs
Nompumelelo Mathe
5 Danelle Lochner
Sinazo Mcatshulwa
Babalwa Latsha
Roseline Botes
Yonela Ngxingolo
Replacements:
Micke Gunter
Asithandile Ntoyanto
Amber Schonert
Nolusindiso Booi
Vainah Ubisi
Sinelitha Noxeke
Unam Tose
Mary Zulu
Kenya Lionesses Squad:
Diana Omosso
Sharon Auma
Prisca Nyerere
Grace Okulu
Stella Wafula
Ann Goretti
Judith Okumu
Rose Otieno
Knight Otwoma
Natasha Emali
Naomi Jelagat
Faith Livoi
Enid Ouma (Captain)
Diana Kemunto
Phoebe Akinyi
Replacements:
Naomi Muhanji
Evelyn Kalemera
Mercy Migongo
Hesla Khisa
Michelle Akinyi
Winnie Awino
Naomi Amuguni
Esther Juma
Photo Caption: With fifteen minutes remaining on the clock, debutante Unathi Mali slotted perfectly into the backline formation to cross the line for her first points in international colours, bringing the Bok Women to a 48-12 lead after a brilliant Janse van Rensburg conversion. The home team finished the warm-up match with a 77-12 victory in Cape Town on Saturday, 16 September, 2023. Photo: Screengrab of the YouTube broadcast
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