Shimlas thrashed the Madibaz on Monday to finish the league stage at the top of the FNB Varsity Cup standings. Meanwhile, the Ikey Tigers secured a home semi-final after downing the CUT Ixias, and Maties rebounded after a poor start to edge UWC and finish third on the log.

UP-Tuks secured the fourth playoff berth after claiming a bonus-point win against UJ, and while the NWU Eagles picked up five log points from their fixture against Wits, they finished one point behind UP-Tuks in the final standings.

UWC and the Madibaz finished ninth and 10th respectively on the combined 2021-22 log and will be relegated to the FNB Varsity Shield as a result.

The first match of the day was fiercely contested by two desperate teams. UP-Tuks produced a more clinical display to secure a 36-19 bonus-point win against UJ.

The defending champions adopted a pragmatic approach in the first half and took the points when they were on offer. By contrast, UJ turned down several kickable penalties in search of four tries and ultimately a valuable bonus point.

Scorers:

FNB UJ 19 (7) – Tries: Darnell Osuagwu (2), Nkosikhona Masuku. Conversions: Jonathan Viljoen (2).

FNB UP-Tuks 36 (15) – Tries: Zander Reynders, Bernard van der Linde, Stephan Smit, Francois Klopper, Mihali Stamper. Conversions: Stefan Coetzee (4). Penalty: Coetzee.

The result of the match at the University of Johannesburg all but dashed the NWU Eagles’ hopes of qualifying for the playoffs. Andre Pretorius’ men beat Wits 31-3, but that performance and result was to no avail.

The hosts made good use of their massive pack in wet and challenging conditions. Captain Sampie Swiegers led the charge at the scrums, and with ball in hand – scoring two tries in the first half.

The Eagles continued to apply the pressure in the second stanza and finished the game with a tally of five tries. While they did enough to claim the bonus point and to win by a substantial margin, they fell agonisingly short of playoff qualification.

Scorers:

FNB NWU Eagles 31 (19) – Tries: Sampie Swiegers (2), Theunis Pretorius, Tino Swanepoel (1x7), Pienaar van Niekerk. Conversions: Martin Venter (2).

FNB Wits 3 (3) – Penalty: Chris Humphries.

In Stellenbosch, UWC gave Maties a big fright before going down 40-31. Udubs made an impressive start to the match, with converted tries by flank Godfrey Muzanargwo and lock Jaen-Louis de Lange putting them 14-0 ahead after 13 minutes.

But Maties hit back with two maul tries from hooker Sean Swart, the leading try-scorer in this year’s tournament (nine). Centre Taigh Schoor and replacement Jurie Matthee then crossed the line to give the hosts a 26-14 half-time lead.

However, UWC fought back brilliantly after the break, with scrumhalf Conwill Conradie scoring a seven-point try and centre Aydon Topley a five-pointer. A conversion and penalty from captain Lyle Hendricks then put them 31-28 up after 61 minutes.

But Maties responded with another two tries, the last from replacement hooker Chris Rossouw with four minutes remaining.

Scorers:

FNB Maties 40 (26) – Tries: Sean Swart (2), Taigh Schoor, Jurie Matthee, Juan Beukes, Chris Rossouw. Conversions: Nevaldo Fleurs (5).

FNB UWC 31 (14) – Tries: Godfrey Muzanargwo, Jaen-Louis de Lange, Conwill Conradie (1x7), Aydon Topley. Conversions: Lyle Hendricks (3). Penalty: Hendricks.

In Cape Town, the UCT Ikeys secured a home semi-final with a hard-fought 34-22 win against the CUT Ixias.

The teams were locked at 5-5 at half-time, but the hosts dominated the second half to score another five tries. No 8 Taariq Kruger grabbed two from the back of the scrum, while replacement back Imad Khan struck twice within the space of three minutes in the final quarter.

CUT did well to dot down four times in the match, with captain Luvuyo Ndevu’s try in the last minute earning them a deserved bonus point.

Scorers:

FNB UCT Ikeys 34 (5) – Tries: Taariq Kruger (2), Athi Gazi, Imad Khan (2), Suleiman Hartzenberg. Conversions: Khan (2).

FNB CUT Ixias 22 (5) – Tries: Jan Kotze, Matthew Sekele, Septimus Derkese, Luvuyo Ndevu. Conversion: Floris Brand.

In Gqeberha, UFS Shimlas secured top spot on the log with a 72-24 thrashing of the Madibaz.

The Free State students scored 10 tries, of which four were seven-pointers. Right wing Zane Bester finished off two of them, while flyhalf George Lourens slotted seven conversions.

The Madibaz scored four tries, but the final scoreline showed why they will be playing in the FNB Varsity Shield next season.

Scorers:

FNB Madibaz 24 (5) – Tries: Kyle Cyster, Arnouw Nel, Warwick Griffin, Brandt Fields. Conversions: Jade Stoffels (2).

FNB UFS Shimlas 72 (42) – Tries: Melusi Mthabela, Wihan Marais (2), Kwezi Dlamini (1x7), Zane Bester (2x7), Ruwald van der Merwe (1x7), Thabo Ndimande, Luthando Buthelezi, Hlomla Payi. Conversions: George Lourens (7).

FNB Varsity Cup semi-finals (18 April):

17h00: FNB UCT Ikeys vs FNB Maties (UCT Rugby Fields, Cape Town - SuperSport channel 211)

19h15: FNB UFS Shimlas vs FNB UP-Tuks (Shimla Park, Bloemfontein - SuperSport channel 211)