The Hollywoodbets Sharks succeeded in their quest to become the first South African team to advance to the semi-final of the EPCR Challenge Cup but it was a weekend of disappointment for the Vodacom Bulls who were knocked out of the Investec Champions Cup competition.
A strong second half display by the KwaZulu-Natalians saw them recover from a 16-14 half-time deficit against Edinburgh in Durban to register a 36-30 victory in their EPCR Challenge Cup quarter-final and they will face the winner of Sunday’s match between Benetton and Connacht in the semi-finals.
This victory marked the Sharks’ fourth win on the trot in Durban and in the EPCR Challenge Cup. The semi-finals will play out on the first weekend in May.
The Bulls, meanwhile, delivered a competitive first-half display against the Northampton Saints at Cinch Stadium @ Franklin's Gardens in the Investec Champions Cup but the hosts pulled away in a one-sided second half, which saw the men from Pretoria succumb to a 59-22 defeat, marking the end of their European campaign.
The Bulls came out firing, making a strong statement early on with good intent on attack and charge downs on defence and they delivered a strong first-half display despite being written off after travelling to the UK without several star players.
The Saints scored four tries in the first stanza – three of which were scored within nine minutes – which saw them take an encouraging 28-10 lead by the 25th minute but the Bulls showed their fighting spirit with Akker van der Merwe and Sebastian de Klerk touching down in quick succession to add to an earlier try by Cameron Hanekom and penalty by Chris Smith, which saw them trail 28-22 at half-time.
Unfortunately for the Bulls, the momentum swung heavily in favour of the hosts after the break as they created wave after wave on attack, while the visitors also found themselves down to 14 men after Hanekom received a yellow card for a dangerous tackle.
This paved the way for the Saints to score another five tries to take their tally to nine. They also did well to shut out the visitors on defence and denied them from adding to their score, which marked the end of the Bulls’ European season.
Score
Northampton Saints 59 (28) – Tries: James Ramm (2), Alex Mitchell (2), Courtney Lawes, Ollie Sleightholme, Alex Coles, Frase Dingwall, Juarno Augustus. Conversions: Fin Smith (7).
Vodacom Bulls 22 (22) – Tries: Cameron Hanekom, Akker van der Merwe, Sebastian de Klerk. Conversions: Chris Smith (2). Penalty: Smith.
Earlier, a combination of the Sharks’ strong forward pack and the play-making abilities of flyhalf Siya Masuku shone out as the Durbanites overcame a competitive first half against Edinburgh – in which they trailed by two points – to build up a 33-16 lead before registering a 36-30 victory at Hollywoodbets Kings Park to book their place in the EPCR Challenge Cup semi-final.
The first half was a hard grind as both teams gave everything and while the KwaZulu-Natalians outscored the visitors two tries to one, the visitors capitalised on their ill-discipline to kick three penalties, while their try was also scored while the hosts were down to 14 men after Eben Etzebeth received a yellow card.
Edinburgh’s last goal, on the stroke of half-time, nudged them into a 16-14 lead going into the sheds.
The Sharks stepped up their game immensely in the second half and the rewards followed with Springbok hooker Bongi Mbonambi adding their third try, while Masuku added four penalties to put them firmly in control with a 33-16 lead.
Edinburgh refused to give up and managed to score two tries in the dying minutes, while Sharks replacement flyhalf Curwin Bosch added yet another penalty in his 100th game for the franchise but this comeback was too little too late for the visitors.
Score
Hollywoodbets Sharks 36 (14) – Tries: Lukhanyo Am, James Venter, Bongi Mbonambi. Conversions: Siya Masuku (3). Penalties: Masuku (4), Curwin Bosch.
Edinburgh 30 (16) – Tries: Pierre Schoeman, Hamish Watson, Dave Cherry. Conversions: Ben Healy (3). Penalties: Healy (3).
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