Western Province ran in seven tries to smash neighbours Boland 50-10 in their Currie Cup derby played at Newlands on Saturday.

It was a fitting reward for WP who took the game to their opponents from the opening whistle, and the bonus-point victory marked an end to their two-match losing streak at the hands of minnow sides in the past fortnight.

A great deal of questions were asked of the Boland defence early on as WP surged upfield with a steady stream of flowing and expansive attacks. WP's inside centre Gcobani Bobo looked like he might cap his side's early initiative but he was collared seven metres short of the Boland tryline after he scorched an opening in the opposition's defence.

Boland relied on two early counter-attacks to break out of their half but their efforts came to nought each time they reached the WP 22m line. In the 13th minute WP left-wing Wylie Human finally made the breakthrough when he wormed his way past three defenders before diving over the line. Flyhalf Peter Grant added the conversion to make it 7-0.

This try seemed to take the urgency out of the WP attack and many of their attacks petered out before it reached the Boland 22m area.

That all changed in the 26th minute when WP right wing Joe Pietersen set off on the first of his two penetrative runs down the Railway Stand touchline.

Each time, however, his efforts were foiled 10m out.

Instead, each side relied on a penalty area to push the score along as Grant and Peach were on target with place-kicks for WP and Boland respectively (10-3).

On the stroke of half-time WP drove powerfully from a line-up and their sortie ended with hooker Deon Fourie scoring WP's second try which Grant converted, moments before the teams made their way back to the dressing rooms (17-3).

WP picked up where they left off at the start of the second half and again the Boland defence was stretched to the hilt. They were able to ward off WP's first three efforts to breach their defence but thereafter Pietersen's pace out wide was too much to contain and the speedy winger darted in for a deserving try in the 46th minute. Grant again converted (24-3).

WP kept up the pressure and Boland were unable to break out of their 22m area although they would have drawn some satisfaction that they denied WP on four occasions in the space of 12 hectic minutes.

WP skipper Bobo broke the deadlock in the 58th minute when he forced his way through the Boland backline to run in unchallenged from 15m out to score WP's bonus point try. Grant added the conversion (31-3).

Play was held for about six minutes moments later because of an injury to replacement prop Schalk Ferreira. It looked serious enough for the medical staff to strap him up fully before he was stretchered off. Wicus Blaauw was forced to return to the fray.

WP centre Dylan des Fountain was next in on the scoring act with a 64th minute try, which required confirmation by the TMO. Grant was on target with his fifth conversion (38-3).

Three minutes later WP flanker AJ Venter intercepted a pass in the Boland backline and he sprinted 20m downfield for score his first try for his new province, and in the process made a mockery of those critics who claim he has lost his pace. Grant again converted (45-3).

Try number seven for WP went to lock Ross Skeate in the 74th minute as the home side reached the half-century after replacement flyhalf Willem de Waal missed the first conversion in the match (50-3).

Boland centre Bradley Mockford snatched a try in the final minute of the match and replacement Stefan Basson added the conversion to round off the score in the match.

The Scorers:

Western Province:
Tries: Human, Fourie, Pietersen, Bobo, Des Fountain, Venter Skeate
Conversions: Grant (6)
Penalty: Grant

Boland:
Try: Mockford
Conversion: Basson
Penalty: Peach

Sapa