Western Province – praag.org

Armed robbers on the loose

Footage clearly shows two black men walking up to the shop, where there are three staff and no customers, with criminal intent.

The armed robbery has gone viral on YouTube with more than 22 000 views, but no arrests have been made.

The five blacks robbed a jewellery shop in Franschhoek.

On October 2, employees of Tracey’s Diamonds were held at gunpoint by a group of robbers pretending to be customers.

It is understood they drove off in three vehicles.

Over the past few weeks there have been a spate of mall attacks.

The Franschhoek robbery was the sixth attack after those in Canal Walk and two V&A Waterfront robberies. Since then there have been another 10, including the one at Waterstone Village in Somerset West on Sunday and the Paarl Mall robberies on Monday, when staff arrived at the Vodacom, Incredible Connection and King Pie shops to find the premises had been looted.

Police spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Andrè Traut said robbers gained entry through the roof, making off with an undisclosed amount of goods.

Centre manager Faizah Berhadien said Paarl Mall had 24-hour security and all areas were monitored by CCTV.

Police have released pictures of four men linked to the Somerset Mall and Brackenfell Mall robberies. Two have been named as Zandisile Nelani and Siyabonga Gwangqa.

On September 21, a jewellery shop was robbed in Somerset Mall. A cellphone shop was robbed in Brackenfell on May 15.

Pictures of the robbers were obtained from surveillance cameras at the malls.

Traut said: “Two of the suspects have been identified and their photographs have been issued for publication as they are wanted on a charge of armed robbery.”

Traut said Nelani and Gwangqa were also wanted for an earlier robbery.

“They were released on bail following their arrest for an armed robbery… at a cellular telephone shop in Woodstock in March, and they failed to return to court.

Scrums a headache for Province

Province coaches: Allister Coetzee, Robbie Fleck, Matthew Proudfoot

The new process of engagement will put the scrums firmly in the spotlight when the Currie Cup competition kicks off this weekend.

The IRB changed the sequence from ‘crouch-touch-set’ to ‘crouch-bind-set’. Props will now be required to pre-bind before the “hit”.

It doesn’t sound like much of a change, but Western Province forwards coach Matthew Proudfoot said it has been one of the main focus points of their build-up to the start of the competition.

The Currie Cup will also be the first high-profile competition to use the new sequence ahead of the new law’s introduction to Tests in the forthcoming Rugby Championship.

It is hoped that the new sequence will ensure the hit will be less powerful, that scrumming will be safer and more orderly – without removing the need for strong, skilled props in the game.

In addition referees have been instructed to police more accurately the putting of the ball into the scrum.

Proudfoot, speaking to Rugby365 ahead of the big north-south derby between WP and the Blue Bulls at Newlands on Saturday, admitted there is a certain amount of “apprehension” ahead of their first encounter with the new engagement sequence.

His remarks come in the wake of suggestions that South African props will need to “learn to scrum””[Springbok coach] Heyneke [Meyer] expressed that in the press and the apprehension about it, starting a Test match that way.

“We feel similar and I am sure the Bulls will feel similar.

“No matter how much prep time you do on the field, or live scrummaging practice – and we’ve done two sessions of live scrummaging [in training] – it is not quite game related. It is not quite a real game.”

Proudfoot admitted there is a level of apprehension and how it is going to work.

“Our whole focus has just been on the execution – making sure that we can execute and apply what the referee wants us to apply.

“The team that does that can then start developing a bit of dominance. If you can’t get your execution right you can put yourself in a bad situation. That has what we have been focussed on and what our whole mental message has been about the scrum for this week.”

Asked if he felt the new sequence will make for a better or more even contests in the scrums, the WP forwards coach said it is too early to tell. – Rugby 365

Western Province triumph over Griquas

Western Province produced a fine display of running rugby in their six-try 45-21 win over Griquas in their Currie Cup match at Newlands on Saturday afternoon.

The crowd of just under 10 000 rejoiced as the match produced seven tries, five of which were scored in the first half.

Both sides made several handling errors, and Province probably left another four tries out on the field.

Given the favourable underfoot conditions at the kick-off there was every prospect of the teams running the ball at every opportunity and that was very much the order of the day in the first half.

Province needed only three minutes at the start to take play up to the Griquas 22-metre line and came good when they ran in a tap-penalty for fullback Joe Pietersen to score. Flyhalf Demetri Catrakilis goaled the conversion from the touchline to give Province a 7-0 lead.

It took Griquas some time to wrest the initiative and when they did they cracked the Province midfield defence nine minutes later for flanker Marnus Schoeman to run in unchallenged from 25 metres out. Flyhalf Francois Brummer converted to level the score at 7-all.

In the next 20 minutes, Province took the match by the scruff of the neck and ran three in three unanswered tries to record a rare first-half bonus point. The three-try burst followed concerted Province pressure, both on defence and attack.

Wing Gerhard van den Heever and centre Marcel Brache scored after interceptions, and flanker Deon Fourie dotted down after a rolling maul.

Catrakilis was in splendid form with the boot, goaling all three tries from the touchline to crown the 21-point burst.

In between Van den Heever and Brache’s try Pietersen scored a long-range penalty, to help Province secure a commanding 31-7 lead at the break.

Neither team managed to strike a measure of rhythm in early second-half play, especially as the defence was considerably tighter on both sides.

Griquas held a territorial advantage and managed several sorties into the Province 22-metre area where they managed one particularly good scrum in the 53rd minute which resulted in a penalty try. Brummer converted to reduce the deficit 31-14.

Province managed to put the setback behind them and despite several substitutions their game started to flow again and their efforts were rewarded when the hardworking hooker Scarra Ntubeni snatched up the ball from broken play, ran in from 25 metres out and dotted down in the corner. Again Catrakilis converted splendidly (38-14).

This advance seemed to knock the stuffing out of the Griquas’ challenge and they were never in the game again. Instead Province kept probing away with strong ball-in-hand runs and grubber kicks through the opposition defence.

Most of their raids into the Griquas 22-metre area looked promising but only one try emerged, thanks to fine finishing by eighthman Jebb Sinclair.

Catrakilis added the conversion to round off Province’s scoring in the match.

Wing Rocco Jansen scored a converted try in the final minute of the match.

Scorers: Western Province: Tries: Joe Pietersen, Gerhard van den Heever, Marcel Brache, Deon Fourie, Scarra Ntubeni and Jebb Sinclair. Conversions: Demetri Catrakilis (6). Penalty: Pietersen.

Griquas: Tries: Marnus Schoeman, penalty try, Rocco Jansen. Conversions: Francois Brummer (3). – Sapa