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The Citizen
4 days ago
- Sport
- The Citizen
URC result: Davids kicks Sharks to glory over Munster
The Sharks and Munster were locked at 24-all after extra time, leading to the penalty shootout, with Davids and the Hendrikse brothers slotting all their kicks. Sharks hooker Fez Mbatha is driven over the tryline by captain Eben Etzebeth during their URC quarterfinal clash against Munster at Kings Park in Durban on Saturday night. Picture: Steve Haag Sports/Gallo Images A sensational cameo from Sharks replacement back Bradley Davids helped kick them to a stunning United Rugby Championship (URC) quarterfinal win over Munster after an unprecedented penalty shootout at Kings Park in Durban on Saturday night. A thrilling match ended level at 24-all, sending it to extra time, where neither side could get a winning score, and due to them having scored three tries each, it meant it had to be decided off the kicking tee. Davids, who was the reserve scrumhalf, was thrown on with less than two minutes left in extra time, for wing Makazole Mapimpi, and went straight into the kick-off along with halfback brothers Jordan and Jaden Hendrikse. All three kickers slotted both of their kicks in the end, with Davids taking two tricky shots from an angle, which was enough to edge the kick-off thanks to Munster utility back Rory Scannell missing the second kick for Munster, which proved to be the only miss in the end. Game of two halves In the match it was a game of two halves after a dreadful first period was followed by an exciting and open second, before the game went into extra time. The first half was a dire affair, with a slew of errors and penalties from both teams leading to a frustrating stop start encounter that saw just one score over the first 40. That came early in the match when flyhalf Jack Crowley made the most of scrappy ball, spotting space behind the Sharks defensive line and sending a perfect cross kick for wing Calvin Nash to run onto and score, with the conversion giving them a 7-0 lead after 10 minutes. Both sides had chances over the rest of the half, including Crowley missing an easy penalty attempt, and Sharks flyhalf Jordan Hendrikse pulling a long range attempt from a difficult angle, as the visitors went into the break ahead. The game then burst to life in the second half as both teams improved their play, making for a much more entertaining spectacle, although there were still a number of knock-ons and mistakes form both. Sharks fight back The Sharks first fought back, with wing Ethan Hooker, who was arguably their best player on the night, receiving a ball out wide outside the 22m, but stepped inside, stepped past the last defender and outpaced the defence to go over for a converted score to level things after 46 minutes. An easy penalty from in front for Hendrikse in the 54th minute briefly put the hosts ahead, only for Munster to come storming back with two tries in four minutes. First they attacked from their own half, Nash making the big break to the 5m, with the recycled ball eventually finding replacement prop Josh Wycherley to go over. After the restart the Sharks lost the ball in Munster's half, with them again attacking from deep and a massive grubber kicked ahead for wing Diarmuid Kilgallen to chase and dot down for the converted score, putting them into a 21-10 lead after 60 minutes. The back-and-forth half continued as the Sharks hit back in the 68th minute, using their dominant scrum as they earned a number of penalties in the Munster 22m, before finally attacking off the back of one and fullback Aphelele Fassi bursting through to score, making it a four point game. Five minutes later the Sharks were back ahead, kicking a penalty into Munster's 22m, attacked off the lineout and after a good initial surge, replacement hooker Fez Mbatha ran the perfect line to smash over, with Hendrikse's extras putting them 24-21 up. It was then a clutch long range penalty from just inside the Sharks half from Munster replacement scrumhalf Conor Murray to level the scores and send the game to extra time. Scorers Sharks: Tries – Ethan Hooker, Aphelele Fassi, Fez Mbatha; Conversions – Jordan Hendrikse (3); Penalty – Hendrikse Munster: Tries – Calvin Nash, Josh Wycherley, Diarmuid Kilgallen; Conversions – Jack Crowley (3); Penalty – Conor Murray
The Citizen
7 days ago
- Sport
- The Citizen
OPINION: Sharks need to show growth by doing another first in the URC
The Sharks have never progressed past the quarter-finals of the URC and will need to do so to appease their unhappy fan base. The Sharks have an opportunity to silence their critics in the coming weeks. Picture: Steve Haag Sports/Gallo Images The Sharks won two tournaments but performed dismally in a third last season. They are headed the same way in terms of mixed results now, and while players say they are still in a building phase as a team, they need to prove there is growth. Head coach John Plumtree's first year at the reins in 2023/24 came with a strong showing in the Challenge Cup, where they won seven games, beating Gloucester fairly comfortably 36–22 in the final in London. They also won the Currie Cup through a last-minute, 59m penalty-kick from Jordan Hendrikse against the Lions in Johannesburg (final score 16–14). However, their United Rugby Championship (URC) campaign was abysmal. The Sharks won four games and lost 14, finishing 14th on the table, not coming anywhere close to qualifying for the play-offs. The Durban outfit lost all its local derbies and finished last in the tournament's South African conference. Sharks getting better? Much of the Sharks' success last season was due to the millions spent on bringing high-profile players in, with Plumtree giving direction to a union in need of strong leadership after Sean Everitt's departure and Neil Powell's interim tenure. The Sharks have continued to attract players and were expected to perform better this season. They have certainly done so in the URC. While securing more than half of their victories through seven points or less, they did enough to guarantee themselves a home quarter-final with a game to spare. In the end, they finished the league phase with 13 wins, tallying 62 points, though only 10 were bonus points – tied the fewest in the top eight with Scarlets and fewer than two sides that did not progress to the play-offs. Yet in the process, the Sharks won the SA shield for the first time. It's a season highlight, one the Sharks needed after crashing out of the Champions Cup with one win from four pool games. They dropped into the Challenge Cup but instead of throwing everything at defending this title, Plumtree fielded a second-string side that lost poorly to Lyon in the last 16. Chance for vindication at Kings Park The team have been hampered by injuries this season, but many Springboks should have been picked for the Lyon game. Fans had been scathing in their critiques of the Sharks all season but increasingly flooded the union's social media pages at that point. The squad is just about at full strength now, and they will want to do another first for the club: progress past the URC quarter-finals. They are on a four-game winning streak as they prepare for the knockout Munster at Kings Park Stadium in Durban on Saturday. They will surely silence their critics and prove progress if they even just reach the semis.
