Stormers, Lions and Bulls move up on Vodacom URC log

The DHL Stormers, Fidelity Securedrive Lions and Vodacom Bulls kept the South African flag flying high in the third-last round of the Vodacom United Rugby Championship as they registered vital victories to improve their positions on the log but it was a weekend of bitter disappointment for the Hollywoodbets Sharks, whose campaign will officially conclude at the end of the pool stages.

The Sharks suffered a narrow 33-28 defeat against Edinburgh in Scotland in the opening match of the weekend but the Stormers and Lions delivered impressive performances with bonus-point home victories on Saturday afternoon. The Capetonians thumped the Glasgow Warriors by 48-12 to move back to the top of the log, while the Johannesburgers earned their sixth home win in a row with a 33-21 victory over Connacht.

The Bulls wrapped up a Super Saturday for the South African teams as they held off the Scarlets to win a dramatic match by 23-21 in Wales where they were down to 13 men at one stage.

These results saw the Stormers reclaim the No 1 spot on the standings (56 points), while the Lions finished the round in third position (53 points) and the Bulls jumped to seventh place on the table (49 points). The Sharks’ defeat dealt the killer blow to their play-off hopes, as they the weekend in 10th position on 36 points, 11 points behind eighth-placed Ulster.

Only nine teams now remain in the play-off race and with some sides to face one another in the closing two rounds, the battle for home playoff spots will come down to the wire.

While the Bulls and Sharks have the luxury of two home games to finish off the league stages, the Stormers and Lions have challenging tours against teams firmly in the play-off race, which will have a significant impact on their log positions with an eye on possible home play-off places at stake.

The Sharks’ challenge in the URC fizzled away on Friday night as they went down against Edinburgh at the Hive Stadium in a match that saw them produce moments of outstanding play but saw a lot of their hard work being undone by errors that have plagued them for a large part of their season.

It was an entertaining first half, with the Durbanites getting off to a strong start with a try by Edwill van der Merwe but the sides found themselves entering the sheds level on 14 points apiece as they both scored two converted tries.

Edinburgh scored their first try in the 15th minute but Emmanuel Tshituka pushed the visitors ahead a few minutes later when he crossed the chalk. This, however, was cancelled out by the Scots’ second try minutes before half-time and the successful conversion tied the scores at the break.

Vincent Koch struck first for the Sharks in the second half but their defence let them down badly as they leaked three tries within nine minutes, which saw the hosts secure their bonus point and take a handy 33-21 lead with 10 minutes left on the clock.

The KwaZulu-Natalians fought back with a try by Vincent Tshituka shortly before the final hooter to earn two bonus points for scoring four tries and going down by fewer than seven points but this was not enough to undo the damage caused by a spate of costly errors in the final quarter, which saw them having to settle for a heartbreaking 33-28 defeat.

Score

Edinburgh 33 (14) – Tries: Ewan Ashman, Glen Young, Mosese Tuipulotu, Hector Patterson, Darcy Graham. Conversions: Cammy Scott (2), Ross Thompson (2).

Hollywoodbets Sharks 28 (14) - Tries: Edwill van der Merwe, Emmanuel Tshituka, Vincent Koch, Vincent Tshituka. Conversions: Jean Smith (4).

The Stormers delivered a sublime performance against the Glasgow Warriors at the DHL Stadium on Saturday to outscore the Scots by six tries to two and they supported this with a tenacious defensive effort for a commanding victory to reclaim the top spot on the table.

The Capetonians started off the match with a bang, racing to an encouraging 17-0 lead after 13 minutes but the second quarter was much tighter as Glasgow retained possession and did well to apply pressure on the defence, which saw the hosts enter the break leading 24-12 with three tries to two.

Springbok prop Ntuthuko Mchunu overcame an injury scare in the second minute to score a brace, thanks to his force and some powerful forward play, to add to an early penalty by Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu but Glasgow held on and fought back with their first try in the 25th minute to reduce their deficit despite receiving a yellow card in the 14th minute.

This was cancelled out by a fantastic try by Evan Roos minutes later, which was triggered by a great break on the outside. However, a yellow card to Cobus Reinach in the 36th minute following a team warning paved the way for the visitors to score their second try to reduce their deficit to 24-12 going into half-time.

The Stormers regained control of the match after play resumed, with Feinberg-Mngomezulu kicking a penalty, which was followed by their bonus-point try by Ruhan Nel following a stunning grubber from the Bok flyhalf after the Scots were reduced to 14 men once again. This pushed the hosts into a commanding 34-12 lead with over 30 minutes left to play.

Feinberg-Mngomezulu and Keke Morabe added further tries in the closing 10 minutes, which made up for a few costly errors close to the tryline in the preceding minutes, which saw them cruise to the rewarding victory.

Score

DHL Stormers 48 (24) – Tries: Ntuthuko Mchunu (2), Evan Roos, Ruhan Nel, Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, Keke Morabe. Conversions: Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu (6). Penalties: Feinberg-Mngomezulu (2).

Glasgow Warriors 12 (12) – Tries: Ollie Smith, Gregor Hiddleston. Conversion: Adam Hastings.

The Lions outclassed Connacht in an impressive display of rugby at Ellis Park for a vital bonus-point victory, which was characterised by enterprising attack and a resolute defensive effort, with the hosts running in five tries to three.

The Lions made their presence felt throughout the first half, capitalising on their attacking opportunities and producing an admirable defensive effort to keep the visitors scoreless in the opening stanza for a morale-boosting 21-0 half-time lead.

It took the Johannesburgers only four minutes to score their first try, by Angelo Davids, who used his pace out wide from great passing, and Henco van Wyk followed early in the second quarter as he dodged his way through a hole in the defence to dart to the tryline to build a 14-0 lead.

Connacht fought tooth and nail to work their way into the match and managed to get close to the tryline on a few occasions but they were unable to break through the defensive wall and soon found themselves 21-0 down after Sibabalwe Mahashe dotted down in the corner on the stroke of half-time.

The Lions wasted no time building on this in the second half, with Erich Cronje touching down for their fourth try minutes after they returned to the field from a great off-load to secure their bonus point and inflate their score to 28 points. But they were dealt a blow soon after as SJ Kotze received a yellow card for a dangerous tackle, giving Connacht the boost they needed to score their first try.

The Johannesburgers bungled a string of chances to add to their try tally but finally managed to break through for their fifth try in the 71st minute, with Van Wyk securing his brace but this was cancelled out by two late tries by Connacht, although it was a mere consolation for the Irishmen as the Lions earned the dominant victory.

Score

Fidelity Securedrive Lions 33 (21) – Tries: Angelo Davids, Henco van Wyk (2), Sibabalwe Mahashe, Erich Cronje. Conversions: Chris Smith (4).

Connacht 21 (0) – Tries: Matthew Devine (2), Paul Boyle. Conversions: Sam Gilbert (3).

The Bulls remained calm and collected in a tense encounter against the Scarlets in Llanelli, where Springbok flyhalf Handre Pollard scored 18 points in a thrilling and dramatic encounter in which the visitors from Pretoria were forced to play with 13 men at one stage, to secure a narrow but important victory in their final tour game, although they were outscored three tries to two.

The first half was a fast and furious affair as both teams ran hard on attack and applied pressure on the opposition and it showed on the scoreboard as both teams crossed the whitewash twice, with the Bulls taking a slender 14-10 lead thanks to their two successful conversions.

Cheswill Jooste got the action off to a stunning start, compliments of a well-timed dart through the defence minutes into the match but the Scarlets sent a long pass out wide to score and added another try at the end of the first quarter from a set play from a line-out, which pushed them 10-7 ahead.

The men from Pretoria hit back with their second try by Pollard from a fantastic break and support play with 12 minutes left in the half and with neither team able to add to their score before the break, the Bulls managed to cling onto a 14-10 lead.

Unfortunately for the South Africans, they were reduced to 14 men early in the second half as Stedman Gans received a yellow card, and things became even more challenging as Francois Klopper received his marching orders minutes later, which saw the visitors go down to 13 players.

The Scarlets took full advantage of this to score their third try in the third quarter and the drama continued to unfold as the teams exchanged two penalties apiece, which saw the Welshman edge one point ahead with six minutes left to play.

The Bulls had a golden opportunity to score their third try with less than five minutes left to play but were denied by a forward pass but a crucial penalty by Pollard at the death sealed a nail-biting victory, their first at Parc y Scarlets.

Score

Scarlets 21 (10) – Tries: Callum Woolley, Eddie James, Fletcher Anderson. Penalties: Joe Hawkins (2).

Vodacom Bulls 23 (14) – Tries: Cheswill Jooste, Handre Pollard. Conversions: Pollard (2). Penalties: Pollard (3).