Faf de Klerk was among the Springboks who shone on debut in the Japan League One, while over in Europe, Jasper Wiese and Andre Esterhuizen both played influential roles in Champions Cup wins.
Champions Cup
– Edinburgh claimed an important 31-20 win over Castres. Props WP Nel, Pierre Schoeman and Boan Venter played for Edinburgh, while veteran scrumhalf Rory Kockott was a second-half substitute for Castres.
– Jasper Wiese scored a try as Leicester Tigers made it back-to-back wins by beating Clermont 23-16. The Springbok No 8 made 19 carries for 76 metres, as well as 16 tackles in a tremendous shift. Tigers captain Hanro Liebenberg also made 16 tackles, the joint-most of any Leicester player in the match.
– Saracens defeated Lyon 28-20 in a hard-hitting game at Matmut Stadium de Gerland. Ivan van Zyl continued his excellent partnership with England’s Owen Farrell, while fellow former Vodacom Bulls player Arno Botha played off the bench for Lyon.
– Ulster Rugby suffered their second successive Champions Cup Pool B loss on Saturday when they were edged out 29-36 by defending champions La Rochelle in a seven-try thriller at the Aviva Stadium. Duane Vermeulen scored a try as Ulster rallied in the second half after falling 29-0 down at half-time. Dillyn Leyds played on the right wing for La Rochelle.
– Ospreys recorded a famous Champions Cup win at Montpellier on Saturday night as they triumphed 21-10. Cobus Reinach started at scrumhalf for the Top 14 champions and made one linebreak and 42 passes, while Ospreys had Tom Botha at tighthead prop.
– Sale Sharks were beaten 45-19 at a rampaging Toulouse side on Sunday. Sale hooker Akker van der Merwe was one of four players to be yellow carded in an action-packed match, while Toulouse lost fullback Thomas Ramos to a red card late in the match. Van der Merwe scored a try just before half-time. Also in action for Sale were loose forwards Jono Ross and Jean-Luc du Preez, lock Cobus Wiese and flyhalf Robert du Preez, who kicked two conversions. Rhynardt Elstadt played 45 minutes for Toulouse.
– Munster opened their Champions Cup account by outplaying Northampton Saints in a 17-6 victory. Jean Kleyn was at lock for Munster, while Juarno Augustus started for Northampton, who had Courtnall Skosan on the bench.
– Harlequins recorded their first win in this season’s Champions Cup as they did enough to see off 14-man Racing at a rain-soaked Twickenham Stoop on Sunday. Andre Esterhuizen scored the decisive try for Harlequins. Fellow Springboks Warrick Gelant (fullback) and Trevor Nyakane (loosehead prop) started for Racing.
Challenge Cup
– Rhyno Smith dotted down twice as Benetton thrashed Aviron Bayonnais 45-7 for their first win in the Challenge Cup this season. Playing at fullback, Smith also picked up a try-assist in a fantastic individual performance.
– Bristol eased to a bonus-point win in the Challenge Cup as they defeated Zebre Parma 35-19 at Ashton Gate on Sunday. Wing Kobus van Wyk and hooker Jacques du Toit scored tries for Zebre, who fielded a large contingent of South Africans, including fullback Richard Kriel, centres Erich Cronje and Franco Smith and flank MJ Pelser.
Japan League One
– Former Vodacom Bulls lock Walt Steenkamp had a successful debut as Mitsubishi Dynaboars beat Black Rams 34-8.
– Pieter-Steph du Toit enjoyed a solid performance at blindside flank for Toyota Verblitz in a victory over the Kwagga Smith-captained Blue Revs. Smith started at No 8 and scored a try for his side.
– Damian de Allende made his League One debut for Wild Knights, who claimed a hard-fought 22-19 win against Brave Lupus.
– Malcolm Marx was part of a quintet of South Africans who helped Kubota Spears beat Suntory Sungoliath 31-18. Locks Ruan Botha and David Bulbring, as well as Japan-capped players Pieter Labuschagne and Gerhard van den Heever all started for the Spears.
– Faf de Klerk and Marcell Coetzee were debutants on opposing sides as Canon Eagles beat Kobe Steel 39-30 in a thrilling encounter. De Klerk came off the bench in the second half and picked up a try assist for the Eagles, who had centre Jesse Kriel and try-scoring fullback SP Marais in the starting lineup. Coetzee started for Kobe and was joined in the pack by former Stormers lock JD Schickerling.
Photo: Atsushi Tomura/Getty Images
