Moving into top eight and clinching Shield is Sharks' mission in Joburg

There is still plenty of rugby to be played in the Vodacom URC, but Saturday’s clash between the Hollywoodbets Sharks and the Lions in Johannesburg will provide the winner with the morale booster of entering the top eight bracket with seven games to go.

Both the Sharks and the Lions are on the cusp of breaking into the top eight, which secures both Investec Champions Cup qualification and a place in the playoff phase of the URC, but are right now on the outside looking in.

Both teams have 24 points after 10 games, but the Sharks are ninth to the 10th of the Lions based on points differential.

The Vodacom Bulls and Ospreys are one point ahead of them in seventh and eighth respectively, both on 25 points.

The Sharks and Lions will have played one more game than the Bulls once Saturday’s clash is completed, with their outstanding game being the 14 March return north/south derby against the DHL Stormers in Pretoria.

However, they will have played the same number of games as the Lions, and if the loser gets a losing bonus point they could also bounce into the top eight.

🔟th 🆚 9⃣th

The Lions host the Hollywoodbets Sharks in the only #VURC match this weekend 🍿

The winner will move into the top eight 👀 pic.twitter.com/ffCfMyBLYy
— SuperSport Rugby (@SSRugby) February 17, 2026

Indeed, we could have that rare situation of having four South African teams in the top eight by the end of the weekend - although that is a prospect that won’t be on the minds of either team.

For them, it is all about climbing the log, and as the Sharks’ Springbok prop Vincent Koch put it on Tuesday, it is a shootout between the two teams for a top eight spot that fans at Ellis Park will be witness to on Saturday.

The Sharks go on from Johannesburg to play the Bulls in Pretoria the following week, and the Bulls at Loftus is never an easy game for anyone, something that will intensify the desire of the Sharks to avenge their narrow defeat to the Lions in the first round game in Durban at the start of January.

“These next two games are massively important in terms of where we finish on the log and where we want to go for the rest of the season,” said Koch.

The Sharks and Lions return from a two-week break due to the Six Nations.

This rescheduled match is the only URC fixture this weekend before a full round next weekend.

Rivalry rugby.
Be there to witness the next chapter.
🎟 https://t.co/H0K4uYcBZd

@Vodacom #URC | #LIOvSHA | #ForOurCity | #LionsPride🦁 pic.twitter.com/l5Tx7Myoxp
— Lions (@LionsRugbyCo) February 16, 2026

SIGHTS SET ON SA SHIELD

Of course, the Sharks ended last month on a high with their two back-to-back wins over the Stormers, which enabled them to climb from a lowly 14th on the log to the cusp of the top eight.

However, Koch says he and his teammates have not spent the three weeks since the Durban win over the Stormers celebrating or feeling pleased with themselves because they know they can’t afford to.

“There were glimpses of us being really good against the Stormers but there were also still things we need to work on. So we have been working quite hard on how we can get better and preparing for what is a massive game for us at the weekend,” said the veteran tighthead prop.

“We had quite a large block of games before the break where we played every weekend. The two victories against the Stormers were unbelievable, a real team effort and showed the growth of the team, but those two games both physically and mentally drained us. Mentally the players definitely needed a break. I think the rest and the break time with family was very important to refocus and set our minds on the next two games.”

A Sharks win on Saturday will also enable them to retain the South African Shield they won last year.

A win will put them beyond the reach of the third placed Stormers, who are seven points adrift.

Conversely, a win for the Lions will put them in with a shout for local boasting rights if they beat the Sharks and can follow up with a win over the Stormers in Johannesburg next week and the Sharks fail to get across the line against the Bulls.