Last-gasp heartbreak: Lions lose second successive Currie Cup final to long-range kick against Griquas

There have been a number of last-minute kicks to decide the Currie Cup final, but the Lions will be feeling particularly cursed as, for the second year in succession, the trophy was snatched away from them right at the death.

Last year it was Jordan Hendrikse of the Sharks with a 59m monster effort; on Saturday it was veteran Griquas flyhalf George Whitehead who calmly nailed a 45m kick from just about the middle of the field for Griquas to win 27-25.

Making the pain even more raw for the Lions was that they had been celebrating victory just moments before, referee Christopher Allison having blown the final whistle.

But then came the intervention of TMO Egon Seconds, who spotted a deliberate knock-on by lock Ruan Delport as he reached over an earlier ruck to harass the scrumhalf.

Ellis Park went from roars of joy to the sort of silence reserved for the dearly departed, save for a few pockets of Griquas support, as Whitehead stepped up to seal the deal.

The 36-year-old Whitehead has succeeded with any number of kicks at goal in his 16-year professional career, but his last two on Saturday will go down in folklore. They gave gritty underdogs Griquas their first Currie Cup title since 1970 and just their fourth overall.

He had, in the 74th minute, put Griquas 24-22 ahead with the angled conversion of centre Mnombo Zwelendaba's try which finally brought reward for 10 minutes of try line barrage.

But it seemed Whitehead would be denied the glory when Lions replacement flyhalf Lubabalo Dobela slotted a 79th-minute flyhalf to claim a 25-24 lead for the home side.

But Griquas' greatest attribute is surely their belief, and they stayed calm enough to mount one last offensive and break Lions' hearts.

The win represents another accolade for highly-rated young coach Pieter Bergh, but it was also reward for a team that consistently excelled through the competition. Their pack played with immense pride as they matched the Lions' URC players, and they even managed to overcome a rough time in the set pieces.

Their dazzling backline has received most of the plaudits and Gurshwin Wehr, Cameron Hufke and Zane Bester always looked dangerous on attack. Not as much ball went the way of right wing Dylan Maart, but his corner flag tackle at the death to stop Angelo Davids from scoring was another pivotal moment.

An exciting first half had ended with the Lions 17-14 ahead, after centre Richard Kriel exploited an unusually soft moment in the Griquas' defence and knifed through for a 34th-minute try.

Griquas had claimed an early lead as, against the run of play, winger Wehr pounced on a loose ball, kicking it forward and Hufke got the bounce to race over for the try.

Lions fullback Quan Horn showed what an exceptional attacking force he is as he stormed through in the 24th minute and then offloaded for wing Kelly Mpeku to provide an efficient finish.

But flank Lourens Oosthuizen, always an effective carrier of the ball for Griquas, then scored their second try, going straight over from a tap penalty.

Whitehead had kicked a penalty to level the scores at 17-17 in the 43rd minute, but Griquas, for all their terrier-like passion, made a number of soft errors and when they failed to take the restart cleanly, it proved to be fatal.

Lions outside centre Henco van Wyk, who made several dangerous attacking incursions, raced forward and gathered the ball as it bounced away from Hufke, going over the try line untouched.

Griquas then piled on the pressure, and it must have felt like they had spent an hour in the 22 for the beleaguered but courageous Lions.

Unfortunately for the home side, they would crack last and it was Griquas who will remember this strange 2025 Currie Cup season with the most fondness.

Points scorers

Lions: Tries — Kelly Mpeku, Richard Kriel, Henco van Wyk. Conversions — Chris Smith (2). Penalties — Smith, Lubabalo Dobela.

Griquas: Tries — Cameron Hufke, Lourens Oosthuizen, Mnombo Zwelendaba. Conversions — George Whitehead (3). Penalties — Whitehead (2)