It was third time lucky and well deserved for the NWU Eagles as they beat Wits 39-34 in their Varsity Cup clash in Johannesburg on Monday night.

It hadn’t been all smooth sailing for coach Burger van der Westhuizen and his team, who lost their first two games to Ikeys (32-23) in a protest-disrupted clash that saw the game move from The Green Mile to another venue the following day, and to Maties (20-27) at home in Potchefstroom.

Needless to say, there was plenty to play for, and the boys were up for the challenge. Tsepo Tlaka and Hanro Venter both scored for the Eagles in the first half, but Wits fought back to lead 15-12 at the break.

The second half made for fascinating theatre, as the Eagles ran in four more tries through Guhan Du Bois, Luhan van der Walt, Ricardo Fourie and Jordan Mcloughlin. But Wits kept their chins up and scored a late try that, had the conversion sailed over, would have levelled the scores. It didn’t, and a final penalty for the visitors gave them a much-needed win.

The Eagles next face Shimlas at the Fanie du Toit Sports Grounds in Potch in a match that will be televised live on SuperSport at 19:00. Shimlas sit second on the overall Varsity Cup log with two wins from three matches.