What a weekend of upsets. The previous weekend had two surprise results, with one  a real upset. The Cheetah win against WP was not such a shock but the Bulls sent back to Pretoria with the wool over their head was. This weekend had again two great surprises.

Although the Bulls played at Loftus their form was so bad not many gave them a chance. In fact on Superbru less than 33% picked the Bulls for a win. The shock of the weekend was the complete turnaround in the game between the Lions and WP.

In the previous encounter some writers said the Lions were lucky to get 0 in their 32-0 defeat. For the Lion supporters and more than 80% of Superbru players the brilliant win by the Lions was by far the upset of the 2010 Currie cup.

What was really impressive was the way all the teams battled from behind to either clinch the match or gain a bonus point. The way the Springboks fought back lately must have rubbed off on them.

My Player of the week- Elton Jantjies

At the conclusion of week nine, only points’ differentials separate Western Province, the Free State Cheetahs and the Blue Bulls on the 2010 Absa Currie Cup log.

All three sides are currently on 28 log points after the defending champions and the Bloemfontein side both recorded crucial victories in this weekend’s action. However only four points now separate the sixth-positioned Griquas and WP who are in second place.

Match reports was already published here on Rugby-Talk so I am only going to point out a few things that stood out for me.

Griquas vs Cheetahs (28-33)

Griquas led 9-0

Half time Cheetahs led 17-9

Cheetahs 23 -9 in the 2^nd half

Griquas had all the possession in the last 10 minutes and had several chances to score, but the Cheetahs defended brilliantly.

No try by the top try scorer Bjorn Basson in this match. He stays at 13 tries well ahead.

Lions vs WP (46-28)

The lead changed hands throughout the first 20 minutes

In the 27^th minute WP builds up a 21-10 lead.

Half time score WP 21-19 Lions

Shortly after the break the WP went ahead 28-19.

Man of the Match: Elton Jantjies for a faultless kicking display and pulling the strings of what was a potent Lions backline.

Elton Jantjies scored 31 points

Leopards vs Pumas (26-27)

Half-time 13 -20

Pumas looked comfortable as they held a 27-17 lead just two minutes into the second half

Pumas scored 4 tries for a point’s tally of 5 in this match.

Blue Bulls vs Sharks (40-34)

Half time score Bulls 13-24 Sharks

Another good try by Lwazi Mvovo taking him to 8 tries, for the CC season.

Coach Frans Ludeke made liberal use of his substitutes at the start of the half in an attempt to shore up the Bulls’ faltering scrum.

The changes made a telling impact as the Bulls scored 20 unanswered points in 11 minutes in the second stanza

Engels burst through the defence before swerving past the last defender to score. So impressive was Engels’s contribution that he was named man of the match despite playing just 40 minutes.

Patric Lambie was not at his best or was he?

The Sharks get one Log point for losing by less than 7 points