The Sharks will aim to pick up another full house of points in the Vodacom United Rugby Championship when they battle Connacht in Galway on Saturday.
Overall Vodacom URC record: Played 1, Sharks won.
When they last met:
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Did you know?
– Connacht and the Sharks first met in April 2022. The South African side won 41-21 in Durban.
– Connacht have lost three of their last four league matches, including their most recent home fixture.
– The Sharks are on a three-match winning streak.
– Powerful centre Tom Farrell made 37 post-contact metres against Leinster in Round 11, not only the highest figure of the round but also of the season so far.
– Both Niall Murray and Dave Heffernan stole two wayward Leinster lineouts last weekend. Only one other player made as many lineout steals in Round 11 (Janko Swanepoel).
– As ever, last weekend Jack Carty made more kicks in play than any other player (17) for a total of 577 kicking metres. His season totals eclipse those of the rest of the league (116 and 4,432).
– Using their scrum as an attacking platform, the Sharks have scored more tries from possessions which start with scrums than any other team (six). Showing the power of this set-piece, their opposition have also averaged a league-low 80% scrum success on their own ball.
– Being patient and knowing when to pull the trigger in attack, the Sharks have made a league-low 825 carries and 944 passes.
– Physical in the carry, against the Vodacom Bulls last weekend the Sharks had a round-high gainline success rate of 66%.
Photo: Gerhard Duraan/BackpagePix
