Stormers kicked into submission
The Stormers held a 10-3 going into the half-time break but increased aerial raids on their back three allowed the Sharks to gain the upperhand in the second stanza and remain unbeaten in the competition this far.
"We expected them [the Sharks] to target Cheslin [Kolbe], that's their mindset. They certainly didn't try running it at us and exploited us with the kicking game, so we obviously need to sharpen up there.
"I was comfortable going into half-time, we played really well and put them under intense pressure. They couldn't exit and we kept hammering away at them but it became a bit of a scrap at the end and through their tactical kicking they put us under pressure.
"Credit to the Sharks though, they defended extremely well and displayed a good tactical kicking performance. They won three or four clean balls in the air against us, which put us under pressure," head coach Robbie Fleck said.
The match was marred by a contentious decision by TMO Marius Jonker, that led to loose forward Siya Kolisi being sent to the sin bin for "intentionally kicking the ball" out of Sharks scrumhalf Cobus Reinach's hand as he stretched for the line.
Fleck refused to be drawn into the incident and resorted to taking the diplomatic approach when asked to comment.
"The call was made. If Siya [Kolisi] intentionally kicked it, then it's a penalty try but if it's just part of the tackle, then it's not. He [Kolisi] is upset as he felt it wasn't intentional," Fleck added.
Fleck was however pleased with his side's overall performance
"I think we played well enough in the first half to be the dominant team, without a doubt. We went into the second half very comfortable and confident that we could continue that process. I guess it [the penalty try] allowed them back into the game but I certainly didn't feel we were under any other pressure from them throughout the match and even at 10-all, I thought we could still turn it around.
"They brought us into a brawl and thrived on it but I guess we got frustrated and the main thing is that we can take a huge amount of positives from the game. We are on a different path from them and we will take comfort in the fact that we can build so many phases on attack and put the defence under pressure.
"We had a nice blend to our game by taking them wide, through the middle and those little attacking kicks in behind them. Everyone is gutted with the loss but the team feels there was enough out there that we can take forward," he stated.
Next up for the Stormers is a home fixture against the only other unbeaten side in the competition, the Brumbies and Fleck knows his side will need to drastically improve two areas of their game.
"We need to be able to handle a kicking game against us and then likewise at the breakdown. Those are the two big things we need to work," he said.
By Tauriq Ebrahim
@Tauriq365
@rugby365com
