Griquas recorded their first victory at the 2010 Coca Cola Under-18 Craven Week after defeating the Valke 26-24 in a thrilling second match played at the North West Stadium.
The Valke held a 14-9 half time lead, but it was the Kimberley side who came up with the goods in the second half to snatch victory in the final minutes of the game.
Griquas’ only points before the break came via three penalty kicks from Jacobus du Plessis. However after the break Herman Groenewald and Hermanus van Niekerk both scored tries which were converted by Du Plessis.
Wiehan Hay, Ruaan Stephen Lerm and Damian van Wyk were the try scorers for the Valke. All three five pointers were converted by Ruan Bernard who also added one penalty.
However minutes before the end, Du Plessis steered Griquas to victory after kicking his fourth penalty of the afternoon.
Valke 24 Griquas 26
Scorers: Valke
– Tries: Wiehan Hay, Ruaan Stephen Lerm, Damian van Wyk; Conversions: Ruan Barnard (3); Penalty: Barnard.
Griquas – Tries: Herman Groenewald, Hermanus van Niekerk; Conversions: Jacobus du Plessis (2); Penalties: Du Plessis (4).