VIDEO: Powell praises Bok muscle in Sharks pack
Backline stars like Lukhanyo Am, Rohan Janse van Rensburg, Makazole Mapimpi, Curwin Bosch and Grant Williams had their moments of magic.
However, it was the Springbok-laden pack that set up the Sharks’ sixth United Rugby Championship victory, as they brushed aside the Bulls 47-20 at Kings Park in Durban at the weekend.
The five -tries-to-two win was as emphatic as the scoreline suggested.
The Bulls, despite holding a seven-point (13-6) lead after a commendable opening half-hour, ran into a Sharks team in a mean mood.
The home team pack turned up the heat and 15 minutes later the scoreline was 30-13 to the Sharks.
The pressure saw the Bulls’ discipline drop to shocking levels – 10 penalties and two yellow cards in the same period.
Another yellow card, Canan Moodie’s second yellow which became a red card, and 10 more second-half penalties added to another miserable day at the office for the Bulls.
It was players like Sikhumbuzo Notshe, Siyamthanda Kolisi (Man if the Match), Eben Etzebeth, Thomas du Toit, Mbongeni Mbonambi and Retshegofaditswe Nché that laid the platform.
The Sharks now travel to Ireland for a URC clash against Connacht in Galway on Saturday, before back-to-back Champions Cup matches with Bordeaux (in Durban) and Harlequins at the Stoop (January 21).
They round out their January schedule with a URC trip to Edinburgh on January 28.
The Sharks Director of Rugby Neil Powell commended his forwards for having “done the job” against the Bulls, even though the team as a whole were not as clinical as they should have been in the opening quarter at Kings Park.
However, the win has seen them move up to fifth place in the URC standings, five points behind the fourth-placed Bulls – but with two games in hand.
While there is a mandatory Springbok resting period in February, Powell said they will have their Boks available for their European Cup games.
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“It’s going to go a long way for us, so it’s a really important win,” he said about the bonus-point win over the Bulls at the weekend.
“You would like to win all your home games, so that was really good.
“I think that’s the sign of a confident team, when we do take one or two quick-tap penalties and play and not be that predictable.
“The guys have done well.
“We could have managed the game a lot better in the first 25 minutes and been a lot more disciplined.
“But when we got into the Bulls’ half, especially in that last 10 minutes of the first half, the guys really played well.”
“Hopefully, as the season gets longer, we can put in a performance like that for 80 minutes and not just for part of the game. I felt it was the same for the Lions last weekend.
“We will look to try to get more consistency right through the 80 minutes, and not at certain times.”
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