Sharks’ first-half forward surge paves way for victory

The Cell C Sharks forwards provided what might have been considered the missing part in their pre-season jigsaw with a dominant first-half performance that paved the way for a comprehensive 45-12 win over the Vodacom Bulls at Jonsson King’s Park in Durban on Friday night.

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In what was an excellent and highly watchable Kick Off 2021 game given the wet underfoot conditions, the Sharks took control of the battle up front in the early stages to lay the platform for a 31-5 halftime advantage.

That score was reminiscent of a similar lead that the Bulls enjoyed in the Super Fan Saturday game at Loftus that started the return to play South African season last September.

Nohamba’s quick-release ? Jonker’s sumptuous dummy = try number six for the Cell C Sharks.

How good were they tonight against the Vodacom Bulls? pic.twitter.com/b8Le7Wq7fv

— SuperSport ?? (@SuperSportTV) March 26, 2021

Just like the Bulls scored five tries in the opening 40 minutes of that game, the Sharks did the same here - one of them was a penalty try - as they produced the performance that maybe they needed at forward in order for coach Sean Everitt to be completely satisfied with the on-field part of the preparation to the Rainbow Cup.

With Thomas du Toit and Ox Nche starting together for the first time since the Currie Cup final nearly two months ago, the scrum made the early statements though it was the Sharks’ mauling and driving that was responsible for most of their first half points.

It was a departure from the previous three Kick Off 2021 games, where the stand out was the Sharks’ willingness to play an all-encompassing ball-in-hand attacking game, but it would nonetheless have been heartening for Sharks fans in the sense that it answered a few questions that may have lingered.

It does need to be pointed out that the Bulls were well short of full strength in this game, certainly in comparison to the Sharks, and that counted as much when it came to their selection in the pack as it did anywhere else.

In that sense, though it would be tempting to do so, it would be inaccurate to suggest that this win was revenge for the Bulls’ win over the Durbanites in the domestic final.

To be frank, the Bulls do miss a lot when just one man is missing, that man being Duane Vermeulen, who played no part in the preparation series.

Bulls coach Jake White knows that better than anyone, he also knows there were many other first-choice players absent, so he should be pleased with the way his young players acquitted themselves in a second half where the Pretoria team did look a lot more composed.

MBATHA HAS BECOME AN IMPRESSIVE PLAYER

But by then they were out of the contest, with the impressive Sharks hooker Fez Mbatha, one of several Sharks players who have been around for a while who have suddenly experienced a growth spurt in their development, dotting down off a driving maul to put the hosts into a 7-0 lead after just three minutes.

Five minutes later the Bulls infringed as the Sharks drove towards the line for what referee Marius van der Westhuizen thought would be a certain try, thus justifying his decision to award the penalty try.

Hooker Schalk Erasmus was yellow carded at the same time, so the fact that the Bulls stuck back four minutes later with the best try of the game is worthy of praise for Nizaam Carr’s men.

It was in fact the Bulls captain on the night who crossed for the try in the left-hand corner but it was started by an excellent take from fullback Richard Kriel in chasing a Morne Steyn up-and-under - that was one positive strike for the much-maligned contestable kicking game - and featured some outstanding handling in the build-up.

HANDLING EXCELLENT IN THE CONDITIONS

Handling was certainly something to the fore for both teams on a night where neither team went into their shells and the skills levels of South African players was writ large.

The Super Rugby Unlocked and Currie Cup competitions were ruined by a win at all costs mentality that led to a conservatism that perhaps negated the strides forward made in ball retention and general handling skills that were made during the lockdown period when the teams concentrated on training the basics more than they would in a normal year.

On a wet night such as the one that this game was played in you’d normally expect a stop-start, error ridden affair. It is true that it slowed down later in the piece, but it was helter-skelter for most of the first hour.

DEBUT TRY FOR BOK CAPTAIN

One player who might have been stretched by the pace of the game considering he has been so often out of action injured since the 2019 Rugby World Cup was the Sharks’ debutant Siya Kolisi, but if he suffered because of the tempo the Springbok captain didn’t show it.

He rounded off a good Sharks try in the 17th minute in which Boeta Chamberlain, the Sharks’ flyhalf on the night, provided the initial spark and impressive wing Sbu Nkosi the main thrust before Kolisi, with a bit of work to do when he got the ball, slid over in the left corner.

The fourth try scored by the Sharks was the product of an excellent set move off an attacking lineout.

The Bulls, as did everyone else, probably expected a driving maul from that position but instead the ball was spun to centre Marius Louw, who crossed for the try.

A NIGHT FOR THE FORWARDS

Although the Sharks’ backs didn’t let themselves down, and Louw’s try was an example of that, it was a night for the forwards, and Ox Nche was up to capitalise on some good direct driving from his compatriots as he went over for his team’s fifth try.

As good as the Sharks were in the scrums and with their mauling in the first half so they were weak in the lineouts in the second half and that played a big role in their failure to convert their halftime dominance on the scoreboard into the massive win that might have been anticipated.

Instead, it was the Bulls who did most of the playing in the second 40 minutes, with young centre Dawid Kellerman crossing for a good try in the 48th minute.

For most of the rest of the game the entertainment value of the rugby that was played was a few notches below what we have become used to in this preparation phase to the new season, but it would be churlish to harp on that given the pace that was injected into the early parts of the clash.

The Sharks did finish the stronger of the two sides, something that was reflected by the fact that at one point the Bulls lost two men to the bin as they struggled to maintain discipline under the pressure applied to their defensive system.

That led to a heel against the head at a Bulls scrum under the posts and young replacement centre capitalised by crossing from close range after selling a good dummy to the Bulls defenders in front of him.

Given how much of the play the Bulls had in the second half, it seemed almost cruel when Sanele Nohamba pulled off a cheeky intercept try to round off the scoring and push the Sharks beyond the 40 mark.

SCORERS

Cell C Sharks 45 - Tries: Fez Mbatha, Siya Kolisi, Marius Louw, Rynhardt Jonker, Ox Nche and Sanele Nohamba; Penalty try; Conversions: Boeta Chamberlain 3 and Sanele Nohamba.

Vodacom Bulls 12 - Tries: Nizaam Carr and Dawid Kellerman; Conversion: Morne Steyn.