Sharks feast on fading Lions

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Makazole Mapimpi crossed for two tries as the Sharks raced to a bonus-point victory in the Vodacom United Rugby Championship match against the Lions at Kings Park on Friday night.

The Springbok winger scored a brace in a man-of-the-match performance as the Sharks streaked away in the second half of a high-tempo, high-attrition 37-10 win against the visiting Lions.

The Sharks came into the match on the back of successive victories in the Champions Cup while the Lions had the tailwind of an impressive Challenge Cup win against touring Stade Francais.

As expected, neither side gave an inch with the match being played at a relentless tempo along with huge physicality. The Sharks looked dangerous from the outset and Mapimpi crossed for his first try in the eighth minute to round off some dazzling attack.

The Durbanites were keen to throw the ball around, controlling possession through numerous phases before fullback Boeta Chamberlain scored in the corner.

But the Lions wasted no time in replying, and Edwill Van der Merwe pounced on an error from flank Jeandre Labuschagne off the ensuing restart to dot down at the end of the first quarter.

The Sharks dominated the field for the majority of the second quarter, spending lengthy periods on attack in the Lions 22, but the visitors’ defence was resolute, not allowing any easy points while remaining disciplined as the first half ended 12-7.

Flyhalves Curwin Bosch and Jordan Hendrikse traded penalties immediately after the restart as the set-piece battle began to dictate the contest. Grant Williams then displayed his electrifying pace as he dotted down after Springbok fullback Andries Coetzee was charged down by Chamberlain, gifting the Sharks another five-pointer that increased their advantage to 22-10 at the end of the third quarter.

The final quarter saw the Sharks shift gears as the Lions ran out of gas, their massive defensive effort having taken a toll they were unable to sustain the tempo. Replacement flyhalf Lionel Cronje’s first act of the game was extending the Sharks’ lead through a penalty from halfway before quickfire tries from Bok captain Siya Kolisi and Mapimpi settled the match.

Both teams will regroup to bring the curtain down on 2022 with one last SA derby on 31 December as the Sharks host the Vodacom Bulls while the Lions travel to Cape Town to face the Stormers.

Photo: Steve Haag/Gallo Images

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Rienk De Beer