Penalties! Just when Dannevirke looked to be in a position to score against top-of-the-table College Old Boys it infringed in the maul and ruck, conceding the initiative and often points.
Errors such as entering the maul from the side, not retaining your feet or not rolling away are matters whichhopefully have been addressed in time for the semifinal at Rugby Park on September 5.
Tough driving play by the Dannevirke Sports forwards set up several scoring opportunities.
In Saturday's match before an empty grandstand and bank due to level 2 restrictions, to be fair both sides transgressed and the referee was consistent.
The game started with College Old Boys putting pressure on early to take a 3-0 lead before after a good driving forward display centre Gillis Chase split the defence and Dannevirke had a 7-3 lead.
The game moved from end to end with good forward and back play by both teams punctuated by penalties – four being converted by College Old Boys and two by Dannevirke to have Dannevirke one point in front after 30 minutes.
A tap and drive from COB had it gain a converted try from another penalty and despite being yellow-carded for a dangerous maul infringement, COB scored as good a try as seen on the park this season, forwards and backs linking in an 80m sweep which ended under the posts.
Dannevirke tried hard, but three lineouts on the COB line were lost and COB had a 26-13 lead at half-time.
A much more disciplined Dannevirke side had it pressing hard in the early stages of the second half but a penalty against the run of play advanced COB's lead to 29-13.
Dannevirke gained confidence from a 60m run by winger Sam Jones after picking up a loose ball and with 20 minutes to go at 29-20, anything was possible.
COB struck first from a tap and run putting the game beyond Dannevirke's reach, but the latter was rewarded for its efforts with a try from a similar tap and run to take the final score 36-27.
Dannevirke's spirits were lifted when shortly after its game the players found out their semifinal opponent Bulls had lost their match to Kia Toa gifting Dannevirke home advantage for September 5.
