The Platinum Leopards are officially back in the big league, with the men from Potchefstroom recording their second successive win over the Valke on Friday night in order to qualify for next season’s Absa Currie Cup Premier Division.

The Leopards – who finished the regular part of the First Division season in first place, before losing to the Griffons in the final on October 10 – beat the Valke 27-19 to make it two from two against the Brakpan-based side, having beaten them 29-24 last weekend.

The Leopards ended the promotion/relegation fortnight as the only unbeaten team and they will be joined in the Premier Division in 2009 by the Boland Cavaliers, despite the Bolanders going down 50-42 to the Griffons in Welkom on Friday afternoon.

Boland beat the Griffons 54-15 last week and that victory was enough to see the Bolanders – who finished seventh in the Absa Currie Cup Premier Division – retain their Premier Division status once again.

The four teams (two from the Premier Division and two from the First Division) involved in the promotion/relegation matches formed a ‘mini-log’ of their own over the past fortnight; with the unbeaten Leopards topping the standings with nine points, followed by Boland (six points) and then the Valke and Griffons (both one point).

The Leopards outscored the Valke by two tries to one on Friday night, with fullback Petrus van Rooyen scoring all the Valke’s points; scoring one try and adding the conversion and four penalties. Jan van Zyl and Vuyo Zangqa scored the Leopards’ tries, with Clayton Durand and WD Botha adding some ‘extras’ through the boot.

Van Zyl, who started at fullback, notched up his 19th first-class try of the season – equalling an all-time Leopards record in the process.

Speaking to www.sarugby.co.za after his team’s win, an elated Leopards coach Chaka Willemse stressed what he had said during the week: “We don’t simply want to replace the Valke in the Premier Division, we want to improve and retain our status for the next season, too.”

One team that certainly retained its status this year was Boland – that after a see-saw encounter against First Division champions, the Griffons, at Welkom’s North West Stadium.

The Griffons outscored Boland by seven tries to six, but the writing was basically on the wall for the home team after their heavy first-leg loss in Wellington last Friday.

“We knew what to expect. Playing in Welkom is never easy, but the Griffons came hard at us,” said Boland captain Piet van Zyl after the match.

“They showed that they are a team with character and dominated us today. Of course we are not happy with our performance, but we’re happy to remain in the big league.”

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