First-half blitz wins it for Sharks
Comments
0
The Sharks took Super Rugby revenge for their loss against the Cheetahs in Round One by beating the hosts 27-10 at the Free State stadium on Saturday.
The Durban side dominated the first half and enjoyed a half-time lead of 22-3 after the Cheetahs failed to come to the party in the first 40 minutes.
The hosts got on the scoreboard first thanks to a penalty by flyhalf Willie du Plessis, who came in as a late replacement for the injured Joe Pietersen.
But it was to be the last time the Cheetahs would trouble the scorers in the first half.
The Sharks came alight, with Springbok flank Marcell Coetzee crossing the whitewash twice.
Springbok center Francois Steyn opened the scoring in the ninth minute with a good try, which flyhalf Pat Lambie converted.
That left Coetzee to score, dotting down in the 29th and 32nd minute, with Lambie converting one of those after adding a penalty earlier.
The Sharks took the foot off the pedal in the second half, but the Cheetahs also defended much better than in the first.
The Sharks still managed to score a bonus-point try in the last 10 minutes via replacement Jack Wilson.
Lambie could not convert, but the Sharks still left Bloemfontein with the bonus point in the bag.
A late try by center Francois Venter in the dying seconds for the Cheetahs was not enough as the Sharks walked away with maximum points.
Man of the match: Coenie Oosthuizen continued to impress this season, especially in the loser stuff. Heinrich Brussow returned to the Cheetahs and proved what a menace he can be at the breakdown. For the Sharks, Frans Steyn had an excellent all round game and showcased a number of skills while the two flanks, Renaldo Bothma and Marcell Coetzee, were outstanding – even replacment lock Marco Wentzel looked sharp. However, in the end Coetzee deserves the award for, among many things, his two tries.
Scorers:
For the Cheetahs:
Try: Venter
Pen: Du Plessis, Brummer
For the Sharks:
Tries: Steyn, Coetzee 2, Wilson
Cons: Lambie 2
Pens: Lambie
Yellow Card: Ryan Kankowski (Sharks, 79 – offsides at the maul)
Teams:
Cheetahs: 15 Willie le Roux, 14 Cornal Hendricks, 13 Johann Sadie, 12 Francois Venter, 11 Raymond Rhule, 10 Joe Pietersen, 9 Sarel Pretorius, 8 Johannes Prinsloo, 7 Jean Cook, 6 Teboho Mohoje, 5 Francois Uys (captain), 4 Carl Wegner, 3 Coenie Oosthuizen, 2 Torsten van Jaarsveld, 1 Danie Mienie.
Replacements: 16 BG Uys, 17 Stephan Coetzee, 18 Nicolaas van Dyk, 19 Heinrich Brüssow, 20 Steven Sykes, 21 Tian Meyer, 22 Willie du Plessis, 23 Clayton Blommetjies.
Sharks: 15 SP Marais, 14 Odwa Ndungane, 13 JP Pietersen, 12 Francois Steyn, 11 Lwazi Mvovo, 10 Patrick Lambie, 9 Cobus Reinach, 8 Ryan Kankowski, 7 Renaldo Bothma, 6 Marcell Coetzee, 5 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 4 Mouritz Botha, 3 Jannie du Plessis, 2 Bismarck du Plessis, (captain), 1 Tendai Mtawarira.
Replacements: 16 Kyle Cooper, 17 Dale Chadwick / Thomas du Toit, 18 Lourens Adriaanse, 19 Marco Wentzel / Lubabalo Mtyanda, 20 Lubabalo Mtembu, 21 Conrad Hoffmann, 22 Andre Esterhuizen, 23 Jack Wilson.
Referee: Chris Pollock (New Zealand)
Assistant referees: Jaco van Heerden (South Africa), Lourens van der Merwe (South Africa)
TMO: Johan Greeff (South Africa)
ADVERTISEMENT
