The EP Elephants suffered a 66-32 defeat to the NovaVit Griffons in their Currie Cup First Division match on Saturday, June 21, at Down Touch Investments Stadium in Welkom, Free State.
Despite a promising start with two tries, the Elephants were outpaced by a rampant Griffons side, who scored a total of nine tries to secure a commanding victory, leaving the Elephants with lessons to address as they rebuild following significant personnel changes from their SA Cup campaign.
The Elephants began strongly, with centre Sherwin Slater crossing for a try converted by flyhalf Oliver Zono to lead 7-0 within six minutes. However, the Griffons responded swiftly, leveling the score at 7-7 and then surging ahead with a further two unanswered tries to lead 21-7 by the 16th minute. Lock Hannes Huisamen then pulled one back for EP with a converted try, and Zono added a penalty to narrow the gap to 21-17. The Griffons continued their dominance however, adding further scores to extend their lead to 35-17 by halftime.
In the second half, the Elephants fought back with an unconverted try by Andile Ngonyama and a penalty from Zono, making it 45-25 at one stage. Winger Rodney Damons also scored a try, converted by Zono but the Griffons sealed the match to win 66-32.
Coach Allister Coetzee expressed disappointment with the result but stressed the need to move forward with his new-look squad. “I’m obviously very disappointed with the lack of ownership and silly mistakes,” he said in a post-match statement. “We will have to chuck this one in the bin and move on. We have another chance next week versus the Leopards away to set things right.”
He noted that this is not the same team that competed in the SA Cup. “We were without as many as six players yesterday, including captain Stefan Willemse who is out with injury so we’re building again.”
Coetzee also highlighted the contrast between home and away performances, noting: “Winning at home and winning away is different. We’ve learned to beat bigger teams at home by controlling the game and playing our way, but we had too many soft moments and created too much chaos with turnovers to play that way away from home.”
The Elephants’ second-half collapse was marked by errors and penalties, exacerbated by a grueling nine-to-ten-hour bus trip to Welkom. “We dominated early but coughed up chances,” Coetzee added. “The turnovers and soft penalties – not rolling away and a high tackle – disrupted our plan.”
Despite the loss, he sees it as a growth opportunity. “That’s a good lesson for us as we continue to grow and become the team we know we can.”
Coetzee called for accountability: “We’ll be brutally honest – players, coaches, and management will self-evaluate our effort and the clarity of our plan. Winning away requires more than just pitching up, even after such a long trip. We’re still positive about our direction; the competition is wide open, and these lessons can help us shift to another gear.”
The Elephants now sit with one win and one loss in the First Division. Their next match is against the Leopards on June 28 at Olen Park, Potchefstroom.
