Tough outing for Sharks as they succumb to Ospreys
TEAM ANNOUNCEMENT: Ospreys managed a comfortable 19-5 win over the Sharks at the Twickenham Stoop for the first ever London fixture of the United Rugby Championship on Friday evening.
There were a lot of unforced errors by John Plumtrees’ men while they were try-less for 77 minutes of the game.
The Sharks started off well when they got on the scoreboard in the first three minutes after Phepsi Buthelezi bulldozed his way over.
A possible try by Ospreys ten minutes later was not given due to loss of control.
A scrum to Ospreys in the shadow of the Sharks goalposts ensued which saw them working hard but they were being kept a metre from the whitewash.
Then Ospreys finally scored as Jack Walsh got over having a man over after working very hard for the try.
Unfortunately Ospreys lost their flyhalf when Owen Williams hobbled off with a leg injury but his replacement Max Nagy proved to be a handful for the Sharks to contain.
After half an hour the very same Nagy managed to secure a ball after Rohan Janse van Rensburg broke through and put the ball on the foot. Nagy was through and no-one could catch him.
Minutes later Van Rensburg was sent to the sin bin reducing the Sharks to 14 men just before half-time.
A kick-through by Nagy resulted in the quick Aphiwe Dyantyi to get back, but he could not dot the ball down and Keiran Williams got his hand on the ball for Ospreys third try.
The Sharks brought the attack in the second half and especially Werner Kok and Ntuthuko Mchunu were prominent, showing exceptional work to get the Sharks over the advantage line. But is was all in vain as they could not convert these efforts into points.
Halfway through the second half there were still no points scored by either side, although the Sharks got close at times.
The Ospreys were exceptional in their line-outs while their defence was also superior, keeping the Sharks away from their try-line since that very first try by the men from Durban in the third minute.
A late penalty kick by Walsh could’ve stretched the home-side’s lead, but it was missed. This kick aside, the young flyhalf was in fine form the whole evening.
In the last five minutes the Sharks had to defend for dear life as Ospreys did not give up on the chance to get a bonus point try.
In the end no points were scored in the second half by either side, signifying the hard work both sides put into their defence.
It will be a tough tour for the Sharks as they struggle with their new game plan under Plumtree.
Scorers:
For Sharks:
Tries: Buthelezi
For Ospreys:
Tries: Walsh, Nagy, Williams
Cons: Walsh 2
Yellow card: Rohan Janse van Rensburg (Sharks – 38’ cynical play)
Ospreys: 15 Jack Walsh, 14 Luke Morgan, 13 Keiran Williams, 12 Owen Watkin, 11 Toby Fricker, 10 Owen Williams, 9 Reuben Morgan-Williams, 8 Morgan Morris (c), 7 Harri Deaves, 6 James Ratti, 5 James Fender, 4 Rhys Davies, 3 Tom Botha, 2 Ethan Lewis, 1 Garyn Phillip
Replacements: 16 Lewis Lloyd, 17 Rhys Henry, 18 Ben Warren, 19 Lewis Jones, 20 Morgan Morse, 21 Luke Davies, 22 Max Nagy, 23 Luke Scully
Sharks: 15 Aphelele Fassi, 14 Werner Kok, 13 Francois Venter (captain), 12 Rohan Janse van Rensburg, 11 Aphiwe Dyantyi, 10 Curwin Bosch, 9 Cameron Wright, 8 Sikhumbuzo Notshe, 7 Phepsi Buthelezi, 6 James Venter, 5 Emile van Heerden, 4 Corne Rahl, 3 Coenie Oosthuizen, 2 Dylan Richardson, 1 Ntuthuko Mchunu.
Replacements: 16 Kerron van Vuuren, 17 Dian Bleuler, 18 Hanro Jacobs, 19 Hyron Andrews, 20 George Cronje, 21 Zee Mkhabela, 22 Boeta Chamberlain, 23 Murray Koster
Referee: Mike Adamson (Scotland)
Assistant Referees: Dewi Phillips (Wales) and Mark Butcher (Wales)
TMO: Matteo Liperini (Italy)
