The Coastal Sharks extended their lead at the top of the Super XV standings with a gutsy 29-23 win over the Auckland Blues at North Harbour Stadium in Auckland, New Zealand, yesterday.
The win puts Jake White’s men nine points ahead of nearest rivals the ACT Brumbies and the Waikato Chiefs in the standings and extends their winning streak over the Blues to 10 straight games.
The Sharks led throughout, but had to call on their renowned defense to hold off the Blues after receiving two yellow cards in the second half of a tight game which featured two tries apiece.
Photo: AFP
They are now in pole position as the Super XV heads into a break next week, achieving the rare feat of winning three of four matches on the road in Australasia.
“Three wins against three tough teams, we’re happy with that,” captain Bismarck du Plessis said.
“We wanted to put them under pressure at scrum time and lineouts, and we did that, particularly in the first half,” he said.
The loss leaves the Blues stranded at the bottom of the New Zealand conference and dents their playoff hopes, leaving them reliant on other teams’ results to secure a finals berth.
The teams exchanged penalties in a frenetic first 10 minutes, before the Coastal Sharks pounced on a turnover and winger Sibusiso Sithole slipped through a gap to set up his skipper Du Plessis for a try.
J.P. Pietersen came close to scoring a second, only to fumble the ball on the line, then Steyn surprised the Blues by potting a drop-goal in the 26th minute to make it 13-6.
Another penalty extended the lead to 16-6 at the break, but a yellow card for Jannie du Plessis gave the home side a one-man advantage just after the restart.
The Blues made the most of the opportunity when Luke Braid darted over the try-line from the base of a scrum.
The Sharks hit back through a long-range kick and chase try from Cobus Reinach reminiscent of his effort in the Sharks’ epic win against the Crusaders last week, when they played with 14 men for most of the match.
They were down to 14 men for a second 10-minute period against the Blues when Frans Steyn was sin-binned for obstruction, again allowing the Blues back into the game and Tevita Li burst down the wing for a try.
The Sharks held on, although a late Blues penalty made it 29-23 and ensured there were some nervous moments for the South African team in the final stages.
WARATAHS 41, REBELS 19
AFP, MELBOURNE, Australia
The New South Wales Waratahs went to the top of the Australian conference with a six-try Super XV romp over the Rebels in Melbourne, Australia, yesterday.
The Waratahs, with their Wallaby backs contingent running the show, downed the Rebels in a bonus-point victory to displace the ACT Brumbies, who were due to face the Northern Bulls in Pretoria, South Africa, later yesterday.
It was the third straight game that the Waratahs had scored five tries or more as they continue their climb up the Super XV standings.
The Waratahs had too much potency in attack for the gritty Rebels and only shoddy goal-kicking from Bernard Foley and Kurtley Beale prevented the Sydneysiders from exceeding a half-century of points.
The Rebels stuck to their guns, but they were never going to repeat their shock 24-22 win in the corresponding match against the Waratahs in Melbourne last year.
Rob Horne, Michael Hooper, Adam Ashley-Cooper, Beale and Israel Folau, who all were named this week in the Wallabies squad to face touring France, scored tries along with replacement scrumhalf Brendan McKibbin.
In the process Wallaby fullback Folau equaled a Waratah try-scoring record with his 10th try of the season to take his career tally for the Waratahs to 18 tries in 23 games.
Foley, also named in the Wallabies squad, kicked one conversion and three penalties from eight attempts, while Beale missed with all three of his shots.
The Rebels’ only try came from a runaway from winger Telusa Veainu, who scooped up a loose pass from Folau and outsprinted the ’Tahs’ cover in an 80m run to the line.
Jason Woodward kicked four penalties and a conversion for the Rebels.
The Waratahs led 16-9 at halftime and ran away with the contest in the second half.
It was a great tonic for the Waratahs, who face last season’s champions the Waikato Chiefs and the Brumbies in their next two games.
“I thought we controlled possession well, and probably our discipline and our goal-kicking let us down a bit, but to get a bonus point was a really good effort,” Waratahs skipper Dave Dennis said. “Last year we lost down here, so we knew it would be tough and at halftime they were still very much in it, and we knew we had to keep working in the second half.”
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