The Sharks proved too good for a young Lions team as the Durban side claimed a 43-31 bonus-point victory in a 10-try thriller in Johannesburg on Saturday.

The Lions had their tails up early as wing Boldwin Hansen scored the opening try in the eighth minute. However, that joy was short-lived as the rest of the first half belonged to the Sharks. Marnus Potgieter levelled the scores in the 11th minute, before Cameron Wright put the visitors ahead 15 minutes later.

Boeta Chamberlain, who converted both tries, added two penalties to give the Sharks a 20-7 lead at the break.

The Sharks carried their momentum into the second half as Thembelani Bholi went over in the 44th minute. Unlike as in the first half, the Lions gave as good as they got as Emmanuel Tshituka and Divan Rossouw scored in between Mpilo Gumede’s try for the Sharks, which gave the visitors a four-try bonus point.

Sanele Nohamba came off the bench and knocked over two more penalties, but the tries kept on flowing as Dan Jooste reached over the tryline from a maul for the Sharks, before Morne Brandon did the same for the Lions. OJ Noa’s yellow card for a high tackle gave the Lions a further boost and they took advantage through James Mollentze’s try. The Lions continued to hunt for a late losing bonus point, but the Sharks managed to hold out to deny them.

Photo: Gordon Arons/Gallo Images