EP are facing a tough away Carling Currie Cup First Division semifinal against the Griffons in Welkom after they crashed to a 22-3 defeat against the Falcons at the Madibaz Stadium on Friday.
In a first-round encounter, the Griffons thumped EP 66-32, and the Elephants will have to up their game considerably if they want to progress to the final.
The Griffons completed the league phase of the competition with a resounding 80-21 win over the winless Border Bulldogs in Welkom on Friday.
The Falcons made a fast start against EP and led 17-0 at halftime thanks to two tries from fullback Mbembe Payi.
It was the Falcons' first win over EP in Gqeberha since 2017, and the team will be especially pleased with their defence, which kept the hosts tryless.
“EP came unstuck against a very physical Falcons side and they were good,” EP coach Allister Coetzee said.
“They definitely played better than us in difficult conditions and funnily enough, we train in these conditions.
“The Falcons, however, used the conditions to their advantage, and they adapted better than us.
“It was very tough out there, and the Falcons were good at scrum time and had the upper hand in the set pieces in the beginning.
“That dominance laid a foundation for them to score two tries in the first half and open a 17-0 lead.
“EP are very disappointed with our performance, and although the Falcons had dominance, I still feel we had opportunities to turn over possession, which we did not capitalise on.
“The Elephants were not accurate today and we were not good enough and we were beaten by a better team.
“It seemed we were flat-footed as though there was a bit of pressure on the boys.
“They seemed to be a bit lacklustre and slow out of the blocks, and lethargic, and I do not know why.
“There were a couple of lessons to be learnt, and the big one is to pitch up.
“I don't think we really pitched up as we should and could have.
“I know the potential of this EP side and we could have come up with a better display, but we were dominated physically in most of the facets of the game.”
The Griffons ran riot in Welkom to beat the Border Bulldogs by 80-21 in their final pool match, scoring 12 tries in the process to ensure they enter the semifinals high on confidence.
Willem van den Hever and Quan Eymann each scored a hat-trick of tries for the hosts, while Andrew Kota contributed 30 points with two tries and 10 conversions.
The Griffons, who scored at a point per minute, led by 40-14 at the break and doubled their points tally in the second half.
In George, the Leopards started well and led 19-7 at the break after outscoring their hosts by three tries to one on their way to a 26-19 win.
The Eagles fought back to level the scores with two tries in the first 15 minutes after the break.
Scorers:
EP Elephants 3: Penalty: Shirwin Cupido.
Falcons 22: Tries: Wernich Aucamp, Mbembe Payi (2). Conversion: Keagan Fortune, Ezrick Alaexander. Penalty: Fortune.
Final league log (all teams played five matches): Falcons 24, Griffons 21, EP Elephants 16, Leopards 11, SWD Eagles 10, Border Bulldogs 2.
The Herald
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